Guidance Tower Academy
by Ashunera
Summary: AU Micaiah has no sense of direction, Ike doesn't own a shirt, Soren's got daddy issues, Ashera compulsively hides in closets, Zelgius wants to go zen, and it's all seriously trying Sephiran's patience. Welcome to Guidance Tower Academy, the craziest school in Tellius.
1. Prologue

_**A/N: This fic is completely **__**AU. This is only the prologue, the other chapters are longer.**_

_**Disclaimer: I own the plot and the modified Tower of Guidance. And that's it.**_

2009, Continent of Tellius

War is breaking out in Tellius. The King of Daien, Ashnard, is rumoured to be creating a nuclear bomb strong enough to destroy the continent. All around, people are sending their children to the only safe school around; Guidance Tower Academy, in the Capital of Begnion, Sienne.

In Crimea, the peaceful neighbour of Daien, the king sends his daughter, Elincia, to the school, as well as her best friend, Lucia, his most trusted friend, Bastian, and the royal knights, led by Geoffrey. In Daien, Ashnard sends his newly found son, Pelleas. In Goldoa, the most reserved country on the continent, the dragon princes, Kurth and Rajaion are going, as well as Rajaion's fiancé Ena and the king, Dheginsea. The young kings of Pheonicis and Kilvas, Tibarn and Naesala, are also being sent there and accompanied by their guardian, Nealuchi.

However, there's already a large group of teenagers who attend this school. When they all meet, the chaos will be unparalleled…


	2. I'm dorming with WHO?

_**Ashera's Note : Yes, you read correctly. As you can see, our username is Ashunera. Anyone who has played Radiant Dawn knows that she is two people : Ashera and Yune. This is why our username is Ashunera; because we're two people. I'm Ashera, and my partner is Yune. I also posted the last chapter, but she will post the next two. We'll tell you who it is in each chapter. That way, if you have a question for one of us, you can ask it. Okay, so here I go?**_

_**Disclaimer : Seeing as I wrote **__**Dis**__**claimer, I am Disclaiming it, which means that I don't own Fire Emblem. I do own Kara and Rita.**_

**Chapter 1 : I'm dorming with who?!**

All around the continent of Tellius, people lived in fear. Families were staying inside their houses, creating extraordinarily deep underground cellars, and keeping their children home, or sending them to boarding school. There was, however, one place where none of this applied; that place was, in fact, the very boarding school children were being sent to.

Laughter erupted from the great hall of Guidance Tower Academy, the only safe school in the continent. A handome blue-haired young man, surrounded by friends, semed to be the center of the activity. A silver haired girl walked up to him angrily.

"Ike Greil Gawain! I can't believe you! You're on the student council, thought only the goddess knows how you managed to pull that off, and you're supposed to set an example on the first day back, which certainly does not mean planning a prank on the new student!"

"Micaiah Altina," Ike muttered the name as though it were a curse. "Figures you'd be the one to spoil my fun."

"I'm saying this for your own good, Gawain," she said seethingly. "You don't want to prank him."

"Since when does leaving around a whoopie cushion get you expelled?"

"Do you even know who he is?"

"Should I?"

"Yes."

"Enlighten me, then."

"Pelleas, Crown Prince of Daien," she said smugly. Micaiah, though she had recently found out that she was the heir to the throne of Begnion, had been raised through and through as a Daien. Ike, though he was born in Gallia, was loyal to Crmea, and the two took the hatred between their two countries personally.

Ike snorted. "Since when does Daien have a crown prince?" Micaiah sniffed with a superior air.

"Well, I wouldn't expect you to know, seeing as you don't even know the difference between Pheonecis and Kilvas, but Ashnard's son Pelleas, who was raised in the country, returned to his father's side in Nevassa this summer." She smirked. "In other words, Daien indeed has a crown prince. Too bad Crimea's king had to make the heir his own brother," she laughed. "I bet you wish Crimea had a prince or princess."

"As a matter of fact, they do," said a bored voice. Soren, a small teenager with long black hair, walked up and sat beside Ike. A small dark-haired girl with bright green eyes sat beside him.

"And she's coming to the Tower this year," she said. The Tower was the students (and the teacher's) nickname for the school.

Micaiah was taken aback, and, for that matter, so was Ike.

"What?" he asked, at the same time as Micaiah said, "Kara, how do you know?"

The girl named Kara laughed. "I just found out today. Soren and I were trying to check the dorms, but alas," she said, shaking her head, "_**she **_has them locked away tight." They all looked up at the staff table at the mention of her. The headmistress, Ashera, was despised by all of the students, and she despised them to. She was admired, however. After all, she was the goddess, though only the students knew.

"Of course she does," Micaiah muttered. She turned and gestured to someone. "Sothe, come check this out. It seems Crimea has a princess." A green haired boy walked up beside Micaiah, who turned back to the others. "So," she said, crossing her arms over her chest, "tell us about this princess."

"Her name is Elincia," Kara replied. "She's our age. She was kept hidden from the public, since she was born after Lord Renning was made heir. They didn't want the public to get angry. Only the school is supposed to know."

"Is she pretty?" Ike asked. Micaiah, who had sat down, slammed her head on the table just as Ashera stepped up to the podium.

"Silence," she commanded. Unlike any other teacher in the continent, every single student went quiet as soon as she spoke. Ashera, her face indifferent, began to speak. "This year, many students are transferring to this school. If I hear anything of you being less than welcoming toward them, the punishment will be severe." She glared meaningfully at the students, who seemed to shrink back at eye contact. She looked back up toward the doors. "Please welcome the following people appropriately," she said, and no one needed to be told why she said that. It was clear that she was referring to Ike's habit of whooping if any of the new students were attractive girls. Ashera looked down at her podium, where there was surely a list of names.

"Prince Pelleas of Daien," she called. A blue-haired boy walked through the doors. He was of average height, with narrow shoulders and a thin frame. He had a gentle face. Everyone applauded at his entry, and anyone looking at Micaiah would have seen that she was sitting up very straight, her beautiful face in an angelic smile. He walked forward uncertainly, unsure of where to sit. Micaiah immediately scooted over toward Sothe, and discreetly waved him to sit beside her. He smiled gratefully and obliged, taking a seat. Micaiah extended her hand to him.

"Micaiah," she said, smiling. "Nice to meet you." Pelleas took her hand.

"Nice to meet you, too," he said. She beamed, and then turned back to the front.

Ashera held up a hand, and the applause immediately stopped. She looked down again.

"Princess Elincia of Crimea," she read. "Lady Lucia, General Geoffrey, Knight Kieran, Knight Astrid, Knight Makalov." A surprisingly pretty young woman walked in, followed by a few people. She had long, green hair and a noble posture. Beside her, a slightly taller girl with long blue hair, and a boy with the same blue hair. Behind them, a redheaded young man, a black haired young woman, and a pink haired man with a rather unattractive face. This time, Ike had the friendly smile on his face, and Elincia smiled back. She and the blue-haired siblings came to sit with them, and the other three sat nearby.

Ashera looked back at her list.

"King Tibarn of Pheonicis, and King Naesala of Kilvas." Two handsome men walked in. Micaiah laughed along with the applause.

"Maybe you can ask them which country is which, Ike!" she said cheerfully. Ike scowled at her, but turned to Ashera as she read the list again.

"Princes Rajaion and Kurthnaga of Goldoa, and Lady Ena of Goldoa," she said. There was a silence following that. Goldoans, leave their country? The princes, no less! Finally, Micaiah began to clap, and soon the rest of the school joined in. That is, except Soren. He was frozen.

"Shit," he said under his breath. Ike turned to him in worry- Soren _never _swore.

Ashera read the final two names.

"Tormod of Begnion and Meg of Crimea." A redheaded young boy walked in, followed by an over weight girl. Everyone clapped again.

"Finally, welcome our new teachers," she said. "Professor Muriam, who will be taken up teaching a new, very much needed class, Moral Education, and His Majesty Professor Dheginsea, history teacher and king of Goldoa."

This time, everyone remembered to clap, but there were whispers around the hall.

"What could the king of Goldoa be doing here?" Kara wondered. Beside her, Soren was frozen, just like when the other Goldoans came in.

"After the meals, you will be assigned your dorms," Ashera said. "You may eat." The students finally began to eat the food that had just been placed on the table by some Begnion ex-soldiers who were in Ashera's service. They also patrolled the halls and the detention rooms, and didn't hesitate to give out punishments or to send students to Ashera's office. They were known as the disciples of order.

***

After the meal was cleared up, Professor Sephiran stepped forward. He was vice-principal and the religion teacher, and much friendlier than Ashera.

"Here are your dorm assignments for this year," he said. "If you this year have an issue with a roommate, you may tell me. However, the first dorm I will announce cannot be changed, as the headmistress made it herself." Everyone knew that Sephiran was Ashera's most devoted follower.

"I would ask you all to stand up and sit down at your dorm's table after you are assigned a dorm. You will each be given the keys and the dorm's rules and privileges, which vary with each dorm. Here is the Hero Dorm," he announced. The room was silent. The Hero Dorm was known as the A-list dorm, and students wished all holiday to be in it. Sephiran knew this, of course. He cleared his throat.

"Micaiah," he said. There was an excited round up applause as Micaiah walked to the front of the room to get her stuff. She returned to her original table, which was, in fact, the Hero Dorm's table.

"Sothe," he said. Sothe grinned, and walked up the same way Micaiah had. He sat down beside her, and they high-fived.

"Ike," he said. Ike began to cheer, but suddenly froze. He turned to look at an equally stunned Micaiah, and they shared a look of loathing. He walked to the front of the room swiftly, snatched the keys and the leaflet from Sephiran, and sat down at the other side of the table.

"Soren," Sephiran read. Ike visibly relaxed at having a friend. Soren sat next to him.

Kara was next. She skipped to the front of the room, in her usual cheerful mood, and sat beside Soren. Pelleas was the last member, and he sat on Micaiah's other side.

After assigning the other dorms, Sephiran briefly spoke about dorm cooperation, and then named the student council.

"Micaiah, Ike, Sothe, Elincia, Geoffrey, Lucia, Naesala, Tibarn, Sanaki, Kurthnaga, Rajaion, Ena, Soren, Rafiel, Reyson, Leanne, Yune, Mist. The teachers on the council are Headmistress Ashera, Professor Zelgius, and I. There will be a meeting later today. Thank you, and have a good year!" he finished. Everyone cheered. Well, except for one table.

Ike and Micaiah were staring each other down at the hero table. Pelleas was desperately trying to comprehend how anyone could despise someone that much, and Sothe was trying to distract Micaiah, his secret crush, and Ike, his idol, from their hatred. Soren shook his head at the sight, and turned to Kara.

"Ike and Micaiah in the same dorm and Zelgius on student council? Well, this should be interesting," he concluded. And at that moment, no one could have imagined how right he would be.

_**A/N: In case you're wondering, here are the dorms:**_

_**Elincia, Lucia, Geoffrey, Kieran and Oscar.**_

_**Laura, Edward, Leonardo, Illyana and Zihark.**_

_**Astrid, Makalov, Marcia, Jill, and Haar.**_

_**Boyd, Mia, Shinon, Gatrie, Nephenee, and Heather.**_

_**Lethe, Lyre, Ranulf, Janaff and Ulki.**_

_**Nailah, Naesala, Tibarn, Reyson, Rafiel and Leanne.**_

_**Sanaki, Mist, Rolf, Tormod and Meg.**_

_**Kurthnaga, Ena, Rajaion, Yune and Rita.**_

_**Please read and review! Reviews are so much fun to read.**_


	3. And Student Council!

_**Yune's Note: Hello everyone! I'm very happy to be part of this project! I had a lot of fun drawing the school, just rough scetches but it was a lot to draw... so many details XD**_

_**Anyways, I don't own Fire Emblem or Fire Emblem characters. I do own the Creepy Otaku and the Blonde Girl. (They show up a few times...) **_

_**I hope you like my chapter! (I will be writing the next one also!) **_

"Ike seriously, would you stop glaring at me?!" Micaiah yelled furiously at the blue haired man.

Ike only continued, not saying a word. Sitting facing each other proved to be quite unsuccessful.

Around the table, the other members of the council were getting ready for the meeting, which would only begin once all the members were actually there. The members present were, Tibarn, Naesala, Geoffrey, Lucia, Kurthnaga, Rajaion, Leanne, Rafiel and Reyson.

Elincia was sitting next to Ike, who eventually stopped glaring at Micaiah, and began to talk to Elincia.

"So are you happy with your dorm, Ike?" she asked curiously

"I guess, but it would be better if I didn't have to dorm with that _thing_." He pointed at the girl facing him

The girl immediately snapped her head in his direction, her eyes full of anger.

"Are you picking a fight with me, _Gawain_?" she shouted, making everyone stop and look at them.

Ike stood up and smirked "_What if I am_?"

Micaiah slammed her fists on the table, and then the glaring match began once more.

Sothe jumped from his chair and began to argue with Soren, who had stood up at the same time. The rest of the members were all very quiet, they stared at each other and began to ask one another if this was usual behavior. Rafiel, Reyson and Leanne were trying to calm the four of them; the three from Goldoa secretly left the room to find a teacher.

Then out of nowhere, someone yelled. "**WOULD YOU ALL SHUT UP**?"

All went silent and stared around the room. It didn't come from the floor, or the door. Ike examined the room, the bookshelf, the flower pot in the corner of the room, the creepy otaku in the other corner and the window, which had the security guard looking through it. Her short brown hair and piercing eyes were hard to forget, Tanith. Quickly she disappeared and the council looked at each other and began laughing.

"Well, that was unexpected!" a small voice laughed

All attention was directed to the girl walking into the room, Yune. Beside her was a girl with long purple hair, Sanaki. Walking behind them was Mist, Ike's younger sister.

"Sanaki, Yune you made it!" Micaiah waved and smiled happily

Mist went to hug her brother and then sat next Yune. Sanaki sat next to Mist.

The three began to have a conversation, or giggling contest to be precise.

The door suddenly opened. Ashera and Sephiran walked in, followed by Zelgius. The three from Goldoa returned shortly after, taking their seats.

Ike bolted up, ready to fight Zelgius but Soren held him down with much effort. The teacher simply sighed and ignored him.

Sanaki straightened in her chair and smiled at Sephiran, who returned the smile.

Ashera clapped her hands and the student council became quiet.

"I welcome all of you. Now, the first student council meeting will begin." She looked around the room and then added "You must know that all of you are role-models, if anyone does anything stupid they will be punished, severely punished." Faces in the group went pale. Ike mumbled something, Micaiah shifted her eyes to look at Ike, Soren sat in his chair not minding the threat and Elincia was staring around the room nervously.

"I have a very important matter to take care of, so I will be leaving this meeting to Sephiran and Zelgius." Ashera quickly disappeared, leaving the students puzzled.

"How did she… get out so quickly?" Elincia asked Ike

"Dunno, she just… does that sometimes." He smiled scratching the back of his head

A conversation started between the two.

Micaiah crossed her arms and sighed.

Sothe looked at her and smiled "What's wrong? You seem upset."

"I'm not upset!" she protested

He rolled his eyes and Micaiah glared at him. Seconds later, the two of them were laughing.

Sephiran cleared his throat "Well, since it's the first meeting there isn't much to talk about. I will tell you, that the underground roller-coaster will be needed this year for the council. It makes it quite convenient." He smiled happily

The newer members of the council sat in confusion.

They all asked at once, "Underground…Roller-coaster?!"

The rest of them simply nodded, making it seem as if it was completely normal.

"Um… excuse me, Ike?" Elincia's asked softly

He turned to face her "Yeah?"

"Is that… roller-coaster…safe?"

Micaiah heard this and spoke teasingly "There haven't been that many incidents. I mean, _ALMOST_ everyone makes it out alive. That thing goes really fast. I mean, _REALLY_ fast."

Tibarn and Naesala joined the conversation. Tibarn intrigued by the subject, "Just _how_ fast does it go?"

A very strange laugh began in the corner of the room; Ike looked in the direction it came from. There, a… person stood in a black cape, a grin on the pale face.

"_**Heehee**_… faster than anything you've ever seen. You are extremely unlucky if you get…" a door opening interrupted the caped person's sentence.

A young girl with straight blonde hair walked into the room. "There you are! I've been looking for you! Stop scaring people, would you?" she grabbed the cape and dragged the caped Otaku out of the room. All was quiet and conversation began a few minutes after that. They simply forgot about the few minutes before.

Soren at this point was discussing important matters with Sephiran, Zelgius and the other members. Mist and Yune were having fun deciding a special day for the elementary division of the school; obviously they were getting along quite well. Ike, Micaiah, Tibarn and Naesala were having a big debate on the roller-coasters, yelling at one another if the other interrupted.

"**THAT IS IT**," a loud voice came from the door "_I AM OFFICIALLY CANCELLING THE FIRST MEETING SINCE NONE OF YOU WILL SHUT UP_!" Tanith walked into the room, a dark aura surrounding her.

Within seconds, the student council fled the room, taking any way out. The flower pot (Which turned out to be an entrance to an underground coaster), jumping out the window and running around Tanith. The only ones left were Sephiran and Zelgius, who looked around the room and looked at each other.

Sephiran sighed, "That was successful. I certainly hope this doesn't happen when Ashera is leading the meeting."

"I would hope not for it to happen." Zelgius said leaving the room

"_Finally_, peace and quiet, now I can continue my patrol of the school!" Tanith said happily and began to whistle a small tune

Meanwhile, Micaiah was making her way down the hall when all of a sudden she ran right into someone.

"I'm so sorry! I swear I never saw you!" she apologized

"No, no, it's fine. Are you hurt at all?" a familiar voice asked

"Pelleas, I'm so glad I found you!"

"Oh… really?" she nodded "Well, I was actually looking for you… I wanted to ask you something…" he said shyly

Both of them stood up.

"I was wondering if you and I could go… could go on a date together. Just in the town on school grounds…"

She thought for a few minutes, obviously she couldn't refuse… "Sure, that sounds great!"

The two walked off together, but they were completely unaware that someone had been listening the whole time…

* * *

_**Oh MY! Who was spying on them?! By the way, if anyone is wondering... yes there are going to be Underground Roller-Coasters. These days, who needs to walk, when you have Underground Roller-Coasters? **_

_**Well, I hope you liked and don't forget to review!**_

_**Bye Bye for now! **_

_**Yune  
**_


	4. Dates and Best Mates

_**Yune's Note: Hello everyone! Sorry it took so long, these chapters are really long to write and sometimes I just need to think some parts out before actually writing them... So, this chapter is pretty wild, I hope you find it funny.**_

_**I don't own Fire Emblem or the characters. I do own the Otaku, Faith, Old Geezer, the two Kappa (well sorta, they don't really exist..) and my partner Ashera owns Kara, Enjoy!  
**_

* * *

"Ike, please would you stop fidgeting, it's irritating." Soren turned to face Ike, who was playing with a water bottle on his bed.

"Soren, this is serious. She's _GOING_ out with him."

"And you care?" Soren returned to look at the computer in front of him

Ike grinned evilly and looked at Soren, who looked horrified when he saw his friends face. "I have the _best_ idea."

Soren sighed and waved his hand, a sign to end the conversation.

The first week back was always boring, but the returning students loved missing class whenever they could. The new students were taken all around the school, by foot, which is an extremely long walk. They usually take a few days to show the whole school and during that time, the other students either go on the tour for fun or they sit in their classes and do work.

It was early morning, exactly 7:15 A.M. Soren and Ike being the only people awake in their dorm. A few minutes later, Micaiah was walking to the kitchen. Soren and Ike joined her.

"Good morning, Thing." Ike patted the top of Micaiah's head.

"Good morning…" she replied sleepily

Both froze and stared at her.

"Uh… Micaiah, are you feeling alright?" Soren asked worriedly

Sothe staggered in, "She's not a morning person lately…" he said rubbing his eyes

Ike smiled wickedly, "thing, thing, thing, thin-" Ike was immediately struck down by being hit on the head with the dorm's toaster.

"Oh woops, I mistook your head for a bug." Micaiah laughed and placed the toaster on the counter

Kara skipped in, obviously in a good mood.

"What happened here?" she asked, looking down at Ike

Ike glared up at Micaiah and yelled "What was that for? I thought you were sleeping!"

She shrugged and began to eat a muffin.

Soren nibbled on a piece of toast, Kara ate fruit and Sothe ate a bowl of healthy cereal.

Ike, not wanting to use the toaster, took ice-cream out of the freezer.

Micaiah stared at him in disbelief.

"You're going to eat that for breakfast? Are you crazy?"

"Some people say eating things that aren't for breakfast is good. Only, if you ate them, you'd get fat." He said flatly

"Jerk. At least I work out more often than you do. All you do is sit around and do nothing all day." She replied coldly

Soren interrupted by yelling at them, then he pointed to the timer on the wall. It read, 1(minute):37(seconds):45(milliseconds) and if they didn't hurry, once that timer rang at zero, apparently something terrible happened. No one actually knew what happened, when Ashera had told them this and by the way she said it, no one even wanted to try.

All four finished eating within seconds grabbed their stuff and ran to the underground rollercoaster. It had a floor selection, top floor (Ashera's office), Student Council room, 4 Classroom floors and then the main hall floor. They selected the classroom floor for their grade, the only floor that any other grade couldn't use.

The timer was getting closer to zero about five seconds left, all four got into their seats and the roller coaster immediately started. None of them could open their eyes because it went so fast, and they were in their classroom within seconds. Micaiah stood up proudly, Kara did also, Ike and Soren slowly got up and Sothe fell off.

"My, my, are you alright?"

They all turned to look at the blonde girl from before.

"Yeah I'm fine." Sothe stood up then asked "Who are you again?"

She smiled "Faith and this would be the second time we've met."

"What was our arrival time?" Ike and Micaiah asked at the same time

Faith looked at the timer, "Since you're the last group to arrive…" she pointed to the timer.

It read: 0:00:01

"_**Damn**_, why does that thing go so fast?" Ike mumbled and walked into the classroom, Soren and Kara following, which left Micaiah, Sothe and Faith in the hallway.

"Thanks Faith." Micaiah smiled and then asked "Aren't you friends with that… Otaku person?"

"Yes, why do you ask?"

"Is... well, is 'it' a boy or girl?"

Suddenly the Otaku appeared, standing behind Faith.

"_Ask and I swear I'll make sure you didn't. I'll make you watch one scene of Lucky Star 100 times…_" and grabbed Faith by the shoulders and ran off into the classroom.

Micaiah looked at Sothe; he shrugged and walked into the classroom.

The classroom was pure chaos, a perfect place for young Yune. There really was no such thing as peace and quiet in this school. Students were jumping off the desks and some were hanging from the ceiling. In the far back sitting in the corner was the Otaku, sitting in front was Faith. Soren and Ike sat in the back row, Micaiah and Sothe sat in the middle and everyone else was sitting where they were assigned to sit. (The Hero dorm was allowed to sit wherever they wanted, as long as they didn't cause any commotion…)

Ashera appeared in the room and everyone was silent.

"Thank you." She looked around the room, "Now, you will all be going on a tour of the school, anyone who isn't new may stay here and do work or go on the tour." Everyone agreed to going on the tour. "The Student Council will take care of things here then."

She then vanished and the room was suddenly loud again. Micaiah and Ike stood up and began to yell at everyone.

"Alright, let's get started! Remember, bring a lunch and a few water bottles!" they repeated to everyone

Elincia walked up to Ike. "Why do we need a few water bottles, Also, a lunch?"

"Well…" he began

"It's _one heck_ of a walk." Soren said flatly while walking out of the room with a backpack on

"I see… So why did they make this school so big?" she asked

"Go ask Ashera herself, my only guess was that they were extremely bored…" Ike replied and walked away

They explored the tower, going through the other classroom floors, main entrance and the student council room. The whole tower itself took about 4 hours to climb by foot.

Soon the tower was over with and they were proceeding to the next area.

"Next is the library…" Micaiah explained

"_**We have a library?!**_" Elincia shouted

"Well, _duh_… why wouldn't we?"

"I just thought… you know this school doesn't seem really normal…" Elincia whispered

Of course, it wasn't your average library. It had 4 floors and had a dark secret…

The grade explored the library, picking books and beginning to read them. Micaiah called Elincia and a few other students over to join her.

"Want to see something?"

They nodded.

She slowly lifted the carpet off the floor; slowly it revealed a staircase with a door at the bottom.

"What's in there?" Elincia asked backing up

A deep scary laugh started behind the group, all of them screamed and turned to see the Otaku with a flashlight lit in front of its face. The lights and shutters to the library off.

"A tomb for the many students that have lost their lives…not very many return from down there, even some of the members of the exploration club make it… " the creepy Otaku whispered into her ear.

Elincia screamed and ran towards Ike.

Micaiah looked at the Otaku, "Man, you really know how to freak someone out. Do you do it as a living?"

"No, I don't usually mean to scare anyone; it's just that I have a very dark appearance. Besides, isn't it always fun to scare new students? Since I am part of the library exploring club, I know what's down there and you should too." Then the otaku walked off and joined Faith.

Micaiah could have sworn she saw a glimpse of the Otaku's leg.

Ike came back with a crying Elincia.

"Look, there's nothing there anymore. See for yourself."

Elincia nodded and lifted the carpet. No door. She sighed and smiled.

"Perhaps I was just imagining things?"

Ike nodded.

Nearby the fourth grade teacher was mumbling to himself. His name was Old Geezer and everything else about him was completely unknown… or at least, the only things they knew was that 1. He scared his students and 2 he drove a very fast car.

Ike stepped closer to the man…

"Chicken for breakfast… flying bunnies…" he paused and hit Ike with a toaster

"What did I do this time?!" Ike shouted on the floor

"Oh terribly sorry, I mistook you for a bug… a _big one too_…" he chuckled then pulled out a jet pack. The old man put it on and off he flew, and yes, right through the 4 ceilings, laughing maniacally.

All the students came to see if Ike was alright. He began to stand up but was struck down by 5 toasters, and all at once. Micaiah, The Otaku, Kara, Sothe and Tibarn had been the ones and the worst part was that they were all grinning evilly… Ike grabbed the caped Otaku. Everyone screamed.

Faith pulled a baseball bat out of her bag and hit Ike, who went flying through the book shelves.

Ashera appeared, flames surrounding her, "If you haven't anything better to do, GET OUT! Destroying my library is not an option!"

Micaiah clapped her hands together.

"ALRIGHT, so now we all go to our dorms and eat lunch! Can everyone please proceed to the roller coaster station; there the coasters will take you to your dorm. Once you have finished, we'll meet up in the classroom."

Soren walked by, "Woohoo." He twirled his finger.

Kara ran after him.

Micaiah sighed as she sat in a chair near the table, Sothe jumped on to the couch and Kara stood behind Soren, who was playing a computer game or perhaps hacking into systems? The door suddenly burst open, a limping or actually, crawling Ike came into the room.

"Like _hell_ you're going to leave me in that death hole…"

"Oh no, Ike what happened to you?" Micaiah asked with a shocked expression

"Shut up, old woman." He replied

"What did you call me?"

"O-L-D W-O-M-A-N, old woman."

Both glared at each other, Soren sighed loudly.

"Give it a rest guys, it's obvious you hate each other. It's been that way for… how many years Kara?"

Startled Kara looked around the room, "Uh, I dunno, but it has been long!" she smiled

Ike pulled a chair to sit next to Soren, Kara skipped to her room, Sothe going to his and Micaiah leaning on the kitchen counter.

She didn't want to eavesdrop but when she heard Ike talking about Elincia, it was something she couldn't miss.

"I think I'm going to ask her out. You know, this weekend." Ike said with a show off attitude.

Micaiah snorted, Ike turned his head.

"What's wrong? You got a date with the magnificent prince Pelleas! Besides, I would never ask you out on a date." He said glaring at her

"Well, I would never go out with you!" Micaiah stomped out of the room angrily

Bored, Soren slithered out of the room while Ike began to shout and break things.

About an hour later, everyone was heading back to the classroom. Every student came with a hiking bag, just in case they ended up not finishing the tour. (On occasions, some tours finished 6 days later…)

While Micaiah walked ahead, Ike walked beside Elincia.

"Say Elincia, what are you doing this weekend?" Elincia looked at him and smiled

"Well, I was going to go look for a book and do a bit of shopping and…" she went through a whole list of what she wanted to do on Guidance Island.

Ike sighed and smiled when she looked at him, "You see… I have tickets to see a movie and…"

"I'd love to go with you!" she yelled happily and everyone around looked at her

"Not so loud, I don't want people to hear…" Ike whispered

"So sorry…" she replied in a whisper

The tour quickly came to an end, about 2 days later. It was the weekend now and Ike and Micaiah were glaring at each other during breakfast. They had found out that they were going to the exact same place for their dates, the movies. Worst of all, they were seeing the same movie, Confessions of a Shopaholic…

Micaiah decided to wear something simple, Ike deciding the same thing.

"So Ike, which one of you chose the movie?" Micaiah asked Ike

"Uh… Elincia."

"_Suuure_."

"So, _did_ Pelleas choose the movie for you guys?" he asked

"Urgh, no _moron_ it was me and I asked him if he was up to watching it!"

She walked out of the room. Kara and Soren walked in.

Soren looked at Micaiah slam the door behind her and looked at Ike and put his thumbs up.

"Good luck, I'd hate to be in your position!" Soren smiled then added "Kara and I are going out for the day, so you have fun on your date!"

Ike smiled and left the room then grabbed a sweater and ran out the door. He met Elincia at the school entrance, and then they took the shuttle bus. They arrived in town a few minutes later, Ike spotted Micaiah and Pelleas walking into the theatre, Ike groaned.

"Are you not feeling well?" Elincia asked concerned about Ike

"No, no, I'm good…" he smiled

Micaiah happily walked next to Pelleas. He smiled when she looked at him and she did the same.

Walking nearby was Faith, she was wearing a white frilly dress. She looked like she was waiting for someone.

Micaiah waved "Faith, who are you waiting for?"

"Yu… oh I'm sorry, a friend of mine…" she replied sweating a little

"Is something wrong?"

Faith shook her head but her hand was waving at something, almost like an indication for someone to move...

"Well, I guess I'll see you around!" Micaiah smiled and left with Pelleas.

Both couples entered the cinema room at the same time but at different doors. Ike glared at Micaiah, who glared right back but grinned when she saw Elincia holding his arm.

Ike sat with Elincia near the middle, Pelleas and Micaiah sat a few rows behind.

Micaiah looked around the room, in the back row there were two suspicious looking people… but they both had blue hair, and they wore huge sun glasses that were bigger than their face, sitting a few seats away were… two Kappa?

Micaiah stared horrified at them; surely they were only a myth? She pulled her cell phone out and began to text Ike. He ignored her at first but eventually replied when she had sent him about 100 messages.

**_Micaiah: Look behind you. You'll be amazed._**

**_Ike: So what, all I see is two weirdoes and… wait…_**

**_Micaiah: See, I so told you!! Think they're real? I bet they are, maybe you should go ask for an autograph!_**

**_Ike: Haha, I'm laughing so hard I'm falling off my stupid movie chair. Now, leave me alone and watch the damn movie._**

**_Micaiah: Lost interest in the Kappa?_**

**_Ike: Obviously it's just Soren and Kara spying on us._**

She closed her phone when Pelleas began to ask her questions. A few minutes later, Faith, the Otaku, Soren and Kara walked into the theatre. Micaiah turned to look at Ike, who looked at her with wide eyes. He moved his lips to say something. They ARE real.

Confessions of a Shopaholic began, Micaiah lost interest within seconds, Pelleas looked pretty interested, Ike was looking at the Kappa and then looking at Soren and then turned to look at the screen and Elincia…well obviously she was enjoying the movie.

Ike put his arm around Elincia and turned to look at Micaiah, he smiled evilly. Micaiah glared at him.

She pulled Pelleas' arm around her shoulders and looked down at Ike with a proud face. Pelleas being awfully confused left his arm where Micaiah had put it.

Ike stood up and shouted, "What are you trying to prove?"

She stood up also and yelled "Well, what are you trying to prove?"

The doors burst open. Tanith the security guard jumped in.

"_SHUT UP_, don't you have any manners at all? Have you ever learned to sit through a movie and watch it, SILENTLY?"

Ike and Elincia looked at each other, Micaiah and Pelleas did the same.

"I think we should leave it for today Micaiah, it seems like it isn't working too well…" Pelleas got up and reached for Micaiah.

Ike and Elincia left also.

Once outside, the couples went their separate ways.

Although, both Ike and Micaiah couldn't help but wonder, who was disguising themselves as Kappa's or were they actually real?

* * *

_**Well, I hope you enjoyed! Please don't forget to Review, it's always nice to get comments on what you, the readers, liked or think might need work on!**_

_**Thank you!  
**_


	5. Finally, in the classroom!

**Ashera Note: I'm back! Bow down! … Nah, don't.**** By the way, the school year started in January, so it's still the first week of Jan. Anyway, I own Kara. And some storyline. I own this chapter. Also, the Fire Emblem is the red thing that happens to be a fire alarm that you find in some places… Our inside joke at school. Hope you enjoy!**

"Ike? Ike, wake up!" called a soft voice. The blue-haired young man opened his eyes groggily. Everything was blurry. He made out pale skin, brown eyes, and a flash of silver… Wait. Ike rubbed his eyes and bolted upright. His arch-nemesis since the eighth grade, Micaiah, was standing in front of him, grinning evilly. He looked around nervously. He was in his pyjamas (well, his sweats and a t-shirt, but he wore that to sleep), his bed was normal, his hair was still blue. And Micaiah was standing there, in front of the chalkboard… Ike looked around in panic. Sure enough, he and his bed were in a top floor classroom. Micaiah's grinned grew wider.

"I blocked off the roller coaster, so you have to walk. And drag the bed. I'd get started if I were you." And with that, she turned to leave. "Oh, wait." She threw him a stopwatch. "You have an hour before Ashera kills you." She laughed maniacally and twirled out the door. Ike groaned. What had he done to deserve this?

He looked around the classroom for something of use. Suddenly, with a stroke of inspiration, he raced to the window. Sure enough, the Hero dorm was only around 25 yards from the school. He opened the window and picked up his bed, which was very hard. He chucked it out the window, and heard a resounding crash. He looked down, and saw that the entire bed frame had broken. _Oh, well,_ he thought grudgingly, _at least the mattress is fine._ He looked at the stopwatch. 45 minutes. Had it really taken him that long? He ran down the many flights of stairs and ran to the mattress. Huffing and puffing, he ran to the dorm with it on his back in the freezing winter weather. He wrenched the doorhandle, which was luckily unlocked, and pulled it into the bedroom he shared with Soren. Without looking at anything, he got out his uniform and pulled on the pants, the shirt, the tie, and the vest. He ran to the bathroom and brushed his teeth. Running back into the room, he checked his schedule. _English, Science, History, Math, Religion, Gym, _he read. He looked at the stopwatch. Fifteen minutes. He furiously packed his books into his backpack and carried the heavy atrocity to the kitchen, where he reached for an apple. He took a bite. Micaiah walked in, and he smiled smugly at her. He started laughing when he noticed that she was in pyjamas.

"Ha!" he said. "You were so insistent on pranking me that you didn't have time to get ready!"

"Yes," she said, with a knowing smile, "but look at the time." She pointed to the clock, and he followed with his eyes. And he stopped smiling.

It was 6:00 AM.

He rounded on her, furious. She laughed and ran off to her room. Ike followed, but upon touching her door handle he was shocked. He screamed so loudly that Soren woke up and had to use a healing staff on him. He growled so loudly that Soren took some steps back.

"Ike," he said slowly, "what are you doing in your uniform?" Ike began to murmur a bunch of swear words that were so bad Soren didn't even realize anything could be that bad but he recognized one recurring word: Micaiah.

Three hours later, after Micaiah had dashed to the classroom exceptionally early and Ike had attempted to fix his bed frame, the large group of students were sitting in room 301, waiting for their English professor to come to class. Ike and Micaiah, who had taken a temporary truce, were having the time of their lives acting out their experiences with some cruel teachers to the new students.

"And then there was Professor Petrine," said Micaiah, as the two shivered for dramatic effect. One of the new students shakily raised a hand.

"Yes?" Micaiah asked. "Oh, and what's your name?"

"A-Astrid," she whispered.

"What would you like to know, Astrid?" Micaiah asked.

"Umm… isn't Petrine one of the highest-ranking Daien generals?"

"Yes," said Pelleas suddenly, "I know her. She isn't that nice." Micaiah looked at him incredulously.

"_Isn't that nice?"_ she screeched. "Petrine had a room covered in pointy, sharp spikes that she would lock you up in for a day if you so much as scratched your face! See this?" she asked, pulling up her sleeve to reveal a long, painful-looking scar. "And this?" she continued, as Ike pulled up his sleeve to reveal a matching scar. "Compliments of Professor Petrine!" she snarled. Ike nodded, his facing matching Micaiah's look of loathing.

"Ashnard- sorry, KING Ashnard," he added sarcastically as Pelleas moved to interrupt, "hired her upon hearing her torture methods!" At this point, most of the students were cowering under the desks, and the others had all gone to the bathroom with large, wet stains in their pants. Grinning evilly, the two usual enemies high-fived each other. When the students got back, however, they were already sitting in their seats in the middle row. A tall man with a brown beard and ponytail walked in.

"Hello Class!" he boomed pleasantly. "I am Professor Bastian! I am glad to see some familiar faces," he said, beaming at Elincia and Lucia, "and- erm- not quite so pleased with some other faces," Micaiah and Ike laughed," but I welcome all new and old students to my English class!" Micaiah and Ike began to laugh again, and soon the Otaku joined in. Soren winked at Kara and the two began to laugh along with them. Mia and Boyd started laughing too. Ranulf, who was behind Ike, joined in. Tibarn and Naesala started laughing too, and Faith started laughing, and Edward and Marcia and Jill and Haar and Lethe and Lyra and Janaff and Sothe laughed too, and soon everyone who wasn't in on the joke was staring around helplessly. Suddenly Elincia pointed to the window.

"It's a Kappa!" she screamed. "They're everywhere!" Pelleas screamed like a girl. Micaiah and Ike could see them too, but when they realized that no one else could they pointed at the two and started laughing at them like crazy. Elincia and Pelleas both looked hurt, and suddenly the laughter got even louder. Ike and Micaiah actually stood up and started laughing maniacally with identical evil grins. Suddenly the Old Geezer that taught Grade 4 came in and yelled "Chicken Potpourri flying on the Kappa Turtle shaped unicorn!" Everyone looked at him weirdly because he didn't make any sense, but Ike, Micaiah, the Otaku and Faith went over to him. They all held hands and spun in a circle, laughing scarily. Suddenly they all took off through the ceiling with a jetpack. Everyone stared at the hole when suddenly Ashera appeared. She stared up through the hole.

"Who did that?" she growled. No one answered. She spun around and pointed at Elincia. "You!" she yelled. "Tell me."

Elincia looked like she was about to pee her- well, she wasn't wearing pants, she was wearing a skirt, but she still looked about to pee. "Mi-Micaiah and Ike and F-" Ashera suddenly relaxed.

"Oh, just those two?" she asked nonchalantly. "I see. Continue the lesson." She disappeared again. Everyone looked around, confused. Someone suddenly noticed the time. First period was over.

"Well," Kara said to Soren, "that was interesting."

"Interesting? Yes," said Soren evilly. "Surprising?"

"Not in the least," said Kara, finishing her sentence.

Upon reaching the science lab, they found Ike, Micaiah, Faith and the Otaku sitting calmly in their seats. Too scared to mention the previous hour, the other students simply sat down and stared at the woman writing on the chalkboard. She had a long red braid and a muscular form. She turned around.

"Good morning, class. I am Professor Titania, former paladin in the Crimean Royal Army, and your Science teacher until June. Today, we will be conducting a lab report on color- yes, Miss Riddell?" she asked, as Elincia raised her hand. Elincia, who looked slightly stunned at being addressed as Miss Riddell, twirled a lock of green hair as she spoke.

"Professor, shouldn't we be doing some theory before doing a lab?" she asked. Titania nodded her approval.

"You are correct, Miss Riddell. However, no background information is needed for this lab. You are being evaluated on your ability to work in my class." Elincia, who looked pleased at being able to prove her abilities to the class. They were put into pairs based on roomates within their dorms; Micaiah and Kara, Sothe and Pelleas, Soren and Ike, Elincia and Lucia, Geoffrey and Kieran, and Mia and Boyd were only a few of the groups (there were far to many to name them all). Professor Titania sat down, and, all of a sudden, a long, impolite sound resounded through the room. Titania's eyes widened, and she stood up. She picked a whoopee cushion up from her chair, and glared furiously. Suddenly, without any students knowing how, Titania was holding Ike and Boyd by the collar at the front of the room.

"Who is responsible for this?" she asked angrily, glaring daggers at the two of them. The boys each pointed at each other. "The TRUTH!" she screeched. Terrified, the boys slowly brought their fingers to their chests.

"Both of you? Is this some kind of joke?" They shook their heads frantically, but she wasn't watching. "Detention for everyone!" she shouted. "Now, leave." The class fearfully filed out the door. Elincia ran up to Micaiah.

"Detention?" she whispered, terrified. "I can't have detention."

"Of course you can't," Micaiah said, rolling her eyes. But looking into Elincia's panicked eyes, she relented. "Ike and Boyd always pull a prank on Titania, and she always gives us all detention. It almost never actually happens." Elincia sighed, and ran off to join Ike, you was walking shakily down the hall. Micaiah looked back to see Soren trying to talk some sense into Titania, who looked like she was on fire. She sped up a little, and walked up to Sothe. Pelleas walked up beside her.

"What happened their?" he asked. Micaiah sighed.

"Ah, Ike and Boyd pranked Titania again. Happens all the time."

"I see," Pelleas said. He smiled, and Micaiah giggled a little. She looked down at her timetable. Next up was History. The smile froze on her face.

"Micaiah? Are you okay?" asked Pelleas. Micaiah shook her head frantically, and looked back. Soren was still with Titania. She had to warn him… she looked ahead. Ike was talking to Elincia, who was giggling. It was her only chance. She took a deep breath, and walked up.

Pow!

Ike felt something hit his back between the shoulder blades. He stumbled forward, and heard a female voice.

"Gawain!" she said. "Follow me." Micaiah grabbed his wrist, and pulled him into the nearest empty classroom, leaving behind a stunned Elincia. She locked the door.

"What was that about, Altina?" Ike asked, rubbing his back. "Wait… why did you-"

"History's next," she said impatiently. Ike looked up.

"So?" he asked.

"Dheginsia's teaching it," she continued. Realization dawned on the young man's face.

"We have to warn Soren," he said slowly. Micaiah nodded. Ike was really the only option; he , excluding Kara, was the only other one in high school that knew about Soren's family. She remembered the circumstances, too; She, Sanaki, Ike, Mist and Soren had been ushered into Ashera's office. Ike and Micaiah had been in the eighth grade at the time, and had already been at the school for years. Ashera had suddenly told them all they had ever needed to know about their families, maybe too much. Well, not about Soren's father… she had been very quiet about that that night.

"What's our plan?" Micaiah asked. Ike smiled, and the two began to discuss their ideas on warning Soren. Of course, being Ike and Micaiah, their plan would be a highly interesting one…

Soren was listening to Titania rant on about his best friend, when he suddenly heard too loud, familiar voices talking in exaggerated tones. The voices were far too familiar, though- what could they be up to?

"SOOOOOOOO," came Micaiah's voice, "we have HISTORY next."

"WE DO INDEED," said Ike. "And we have that new History TEACHER, too."

"SO I HEAR," said Micaiah. The two stopped a few feet from the door of the Science Lab. "Isn't it DHEGINSIA?"

"Yes, IT IS," said Ike. The two were nodding, and glancing at Soren. "I wonder if, since he's the DRAGON KING of GOLDOA, he'll make us call him YOUR MAJESTY or KING DHEGINSIA?"

"Maybe he will," said Micaiah. She looked terribly panicked. "I WONDER IF SOREN IS GOING TO ENJOY HAVING DHEGINSIA THE DRAGON KING OF GOLDOA AS OUR HISTORY TEACHER WHICH IS NEXT PERIOD, MIND YOU," she almost yelled. Suddenly Soren realized what they were doing. He ran out of the class, and the two others followed him.

"WHY DIDN'T YOU WARN ME?" Soren yelled, attracting the glances of many students.

"WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU WERE DOING, CONVERSING ABOUT CLASS? YOU KNOW THAT IKE AND I WOULD NEVER ACTUALLY THINK ABOUT CLASS WHEN WE AREN'T IN IT!" Micaiah replied just as loudly.

"IN FACT, WE WOULD BE HAVING A NORMAL CONVERSATION ABOUT ANYTHING!" Ike finished.

Thankfully, Ike remembered that the hero dorm was only a short way away from the school, and they got Soren into history class. He sat at the center in the back against the wall. Micaiah and Ike were hiding him by sitting next to each other directly ahead of him, Sothe and Kara were hiding him from the sides, and Micaiah and Ike had forced Pelleas and Elincia to hide him from a diagonal (though they did not know why). Dheginsia walked in at the exact time class started, down to the last millisecond (Ike and Micaiah were staring at the super clock so hard that Soren had to hit them to make them pay attention ) and stood at the front of the class in silence. Finally, he took out a sheet of paper.

"Altina, Micaiah," he called. Micaiah, thoroughly startled, called out "Present," just as Dheginsea was about to look up.

He continued to name names until he finished the list, and put the paper down. Only one problem; he hadn't named Soren. Micaiah discreetly took Ike's hand and seemed to draw on it using her finger, though she was really using the secret code they'd used when they were just young kids, alone in the school and in the world. Ike responded after a second.

_What's he doing?_ Micaiah had asked.

_No clue_, Ike responded.

_I have a bad feeling about this._

_Same here._

"As some of you may or may not have noticed, I did not name one of your number. This person is-" Suddenly Micaiah and Ike cut him off.

"HOLY SHIT IT'S A KAPPA!" Micaiah screamed.

"IT'S A FREAKIN' KAPPA!"

"NO! IT'S TWO FREAKIN' KAPPAS!"

"WE'RE BEING ATTACKED BY KAPPAS!"

"MAYBE THEY'LL EAT DINNER WITH US!"

"MAYBE WE'LL HAVE ROASTED KAPPAS FOR DINNER!"

"NO! KAPPAS AREN'T TASTY!"

"LIKE YOU KNOW!"

"PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT A HUG FROM YOU!"

"PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO READ THEM A BEDTIME STORY!"

"PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO DANCE THE MACARENA!"

"SAVE US FROM THE KAPPAS, PROFESSOR!"

"THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO SAVE US FROM THEM, PROFESSOR!"

"NO, IKE! IT'S US THAT WANT YOU TO SAVE US FROM THE KAPPAS!"

"YEAH! THAT'S RIGHT!"

Micaiah flung her eraser at the Fire Emblem, and the bell went off. All of the other kids, who had been staring up until then, screamed and ran out the door. The Hero Dorm group (minus Pelleas, who was screaming with Elincia) opened the window and jumped down the five stories (thankfully, they were all extremely skilled and experienced school window jumpers) and ran out to meet the students who had been on the first floor and escaped the fastest. After almost forty minutes of intense screaming, Ashera came out in front of the school.

"False alarm. Third Period is over. It's lunch period." She disappeared.

Micaiah turned to Ike.

"We are going to be in so much trouble," she whispered in his ear. Ike nodded, looking worried, but suddenly, a mischievous grin spread across his face.

"Not if Kappas really do attack…"


	6. Shall We Dine?

_**Yune's Note: **_**Hi everyone! Sorry this took so long, my computer was giving me a hard time! **

**Anyways, I do not own Fire Emblem or their Characters. I own the old geezer, Yue, Faith and lastly the Otaku! (YAY)**

**So anyways, it's lunchtime at Guidance Tower! Woo-hoo!**

**

* * *

  
**

It was lunchtime at Guidance academy, and the students were all making their way to the cafeteria.

Ike, Micaiah, Boyd, Soren, Kara and Mia were walking when suddenly Ike, Micaiah and Boyd stopped to look at each other.

"Hey… I think it's _**THAT**_ time of day." Ike said with a huge grin on his face

"Oh _YEAH_." Micaiah said still looking ahead of her

"I've been dying to do this all morning…" Boyd said looking at Ike

Micaiah took one of her shoes off and instantly chucked it somewhere… but somehow it had done a boomerang effect and hit Ike on the head. He grabbed the shoe and stared at it in confusion. Boyd laughed and took his shoe and chucked it.

**CRASH** (Or rather, what a huge window sounds like when it shatters. We're talking HUGE window.)

Sephiran

Looked out his shattered window, Boyd looked up and smiled.

Poor Sephiran just looked down with a calm but extremely blank face.

Boyd smiled and waved.

"I'll make sure that window is fixed by tonight! Sorry Sir!" Boyd bowed and Sephiran left his office.

Micaiah burst out laughing. Ike took his shoe off and chucked it…

The shoe flew normally in front of them but suddenly a truck passed by and the shoe… well, went with it.

Micaiah was on the ground laughing hysterically. Boyd was trying not to laugh, Soren was leaning on a tree laughing, Mia and Kara looked at each other and then at the truck that was speeding down the path.

"It wasn't that funny…" Ike said angrily

"You have no idea how fun that was to watch! Do it again!" Micaiah managed to say between laughs

"Shut up! Now I don't have a shoe!" He yelled but it only made her laugh harder.

The group proceeded to the cafeteria. Once there, everyone was busy with club meetings. Marcia, Mist and Lyre were in their cheerleading outfits and dancing. Ike went to sit with his club. Micaiah and the swim club sat only a few tables away.

Ike within a few seconds had his cell phone in his hands. Micaiah sat at her table looking at the paper with the list of club members…

"Alright, so we have Marcia, Nephenee, Fiona, Yue and me." Micaiah looked up, "I'm guessing that Yue isn't here?"

The members looked around and shrugged.

"I guess she couldn't make it today." Marcia began to play with a paper

"Maybe next time she'll come around." Nephenee spoke quietly

"I think they said she was a really smart middle school student. I'll ask Yune if she knows her." Fiona said looking around

Micaiah nodded. She looked around and spotted Ike pointing to his phone, she took hers out.

**Ike:** Your club seems to be working well.

**Micaiah:** _Yeeeeaaah_, I wouldn't talk. It seems like a death zone over there.

**Ike:** Oh come on! It's not like I wanted to join the Science Club!

**Micaiah:** Oh what happened? Ashera got mad at you?

**Ike:** Shut up. Besides that, why aren't you in any boring clubs?

**Micaiah:** 'Cause I'm a _gooood_ girl.

**Ike:** _OH SURE_. Anyways, it should be around time now to sit at our tables. See ya.

**Micaiah:** Yeah, see ya.

A bell rang, which meant club meetings were over, everyone hurried to their dorm tables.

Ike was most likely the fastest when it came to getting to the tables. Quickly he passed everyone around him to meet up with his sister.

His sister Mist, usually walked with him to the Hero table, and then joined her table where Sanaki and Yune sat giggling while they waited.

Ike decided that today he would accompany his sister to her table. When they got there, Yune looked at Ike and smiled and so did Sanaki.

"Hello Ike." Sanaki said

"Hi Ike!" Yune waved and smiled

Ike smiled at the two then turned to his sister, "So, I guess I'll see you later." Mist nodded and began to push her brother away from her table.

"Say "Hi" to Micaiah for me, 'kay?" she said sweetly

When walking towards the Hero table, he was hit by a toaster. He looked around and noticed the Old Geezer holding a skull; Ike rubbed his eyes and looked again, this time the old man was holding a toaster. He hurried to his table.

Soren and Kara sat in front of a laptop; Micaiah, Pelleas and Sothe sat chatting. Micaiah then looked up a shouted;

"_Ikee-poo_! Over here!" she waved.

Ike looked over his shoulder; everyone stopped talking and stared at him. People walking with their food trays immediately stopped and accidently dropped them, one or two falling from the second floor onto the heads of people bellow. Even teachers stopped talking and looked. The only person actually moving was Micaiah. (Still waving)

Oscar, at the other end of the cafeteria, looked up with his squinty eyes. Ike glared at Micaiah.

"Happy that you just humiliated me?" he asked angrily

"Of course I am!" she laughed maniacally and then added, "I was forced to do it."

The silence kept going on until Ashera walked in through the cafeteria doors. Everyone looked at Ashera, because for the first time, she actually used a door instead of appearing randomly. All of a sudden, Naesala and Tibarn jumped from their seats and pointed to the clock on the wall.

"The clock stopped working! We're frozen in time!" Both yelled, and then the whole school began to panic.

Ike and Micaiah looked at each other and laughed.

"What is wrong with all of you? We cannot be frozen in time, it is not possible." Ashera spoke seriously

"But Miss, the clocks usually never stop working!" the students replied loudly

"Yes, but perhaps we have forgotten to change the battery."

"They have batteries?"

"I do not know, figure it out yourselves. You're the ones that go to school."

"BUT…"

**_PLOP…_**

Everyone stopped talking and looked around. The sound didn't seem normal.

_**PLOP, PLOP…**_

Elincia hung onto Lucia's arm. Geoffrey sat calmly in his chair.

**_PLOP, PLOP, PLOP, PLOP, PLOP, PLOP…_**

Pelleas looked up at the skylight.

"Everyone…I think you should look up…" he pointed skyward

Everyone looked up, except Ashera, and stared at the skylight in horror.

"Miss Ashera, I think we're under attack…" Elincia shouted from her seat

"This is ridiculous! I can't stand all this nonsense of time stopping and being attacked!" then Ashera disappeared.

**_PLOP, PLOP…_**

Everyone looked up, then down and finally up. Above them, Kappa's were squished against the window.

The window began to crack.

"Uh… alright everyone, we have a situation. Anyone know how to stop Kappa attacks?" Leonardo asked

Soren and Kara shrugged while staring at their laptop (They didn't seem to care very much at that moment.), so did everyone else, except the Otaku.

"So… you know how to stop them?" The blonde boy asked

"Of course, it's very simple." The Otaku said slowly

"**WELL? WHAT IS IT?**" everyone but a few students asked

Ike and Micaiah grinned.

Sephiran and Zelgius looked at each other and then sighed.

Tibran and Naesala crossed their arms and grinned.

Kieran, Oscar, and Boyd seemed to understand the situation.

Zelgius turned to Sephiran, "Sir…"

Sephiran looked at him, "If Ashera ever finds out… my life will come to a quick ending…"

"I can take your place this time…" Zelgius suggested

Sephiran shook his head, "I have no choice this time around. I'll just take the chance and see how things turn out…"

Sanaki, Mist and Yune sat at their table, giggling. It seemed like they somewhat understood what was happening, but Sanaki was giggling uncontrollably.

"THE **MACARENA**!" the students who knew shouted (Zelgius and Sephiran did not shout…)

All of the other students looked at each other in confusion, somewhat not shocked that it was… the Macarena.

Ike, Micaiah, Boyd and some other students jumped onto the tables and began the dance.

Sephiran and Zelgius on the side began dancing also.

Soon after, everyone in the whole school was dancing, except the old geezer who stood taking pictures of them all; Elincia and Pelleas were staring at each other and then looked at the students in horror.

"Hehe, I'll secretly stick these in the yearbook…" the old man said quietly to himself, which led Ike and Micaiah to have an interesting idea.

While everyone was dancing, Ike and Micaiah quickly jumped off and began to film the event with their cell phones.

The Kappa's were rolling off the roof and once they were all gone, the students and teachers stopped dancing.

Ike and Micaiah began to laugh hysterically, falling on the floor as they laughed.

Everyone else just stared at the roof and then at Ike and Micaiah.

The Old Geezer looked at his watch, "Well 'bout time I headed to my elementary class. It's about time for them to be let out of the class… hehe, wonder how they handled the dark room for an hour…" his jet pack (which turned out to be the toaster he held) started and up he went, through to glass.

Everyone ate in silence; quickly they finished and began to leave the cafeteria. (This now had a new air conditioning feature!)

Tibarn turned towards the clock, he pointed, "Hey look… the clock works again…"

Everyone turned to stare at the clock, Ike and Micaiah looked at each other…

"We stopped in time… didn't we?" Micaiah asked looking at the clock blankly

"Yeah, guess we did…" he replied, also looking blankly at the clock.

The student's somehow could hardly believe it, they had stopped in time, was it the Kappa's?… or, was it just a coincidence?

Luckily no one noticed that the Kappa's were serving lunch…

* * *

**Ehehehe, that was fun. You'll notice that Ashera and I have a lot of fun with Kappa's! **

**Oh and before I forget (I didn't want to say this at the beginning) I don't own the Macarena either! **

**Poor Sephiran... he doesn't wanna dance!**

**Please don't forget to review! We love to hear what you guys think! **

_**~Yune~**_


	7. That doesn't happen every day

**Ashera's Note: I AM SO SORRY THAT IT'S BEEN SO LONG! I know you probably all hate me, but I'm sorry! Although… the only reason I'm even POSTING this is because of your lovely reviews. Lovely, lovely, lovely…**

**Disclaimer: -****cries/slobbers on floor-**

**Ohh… by the way, the Old Geezer and the Kappas DO NOT come from PaniPoniDash. Yune and I were watching it together a few weeks ago, and our jaws **_**hit the floor **_**when we saw Kappas and the Old Geezer.**

GYM CLASS

That was what it said on Ike and Micaiah's schedules for fourth period.

They shared a glance. Micaiah smiled widely.

"Ikey-poo, it's gym class! Isn't that delightful?" she enthused. Ike put on a grimace and spoke in a high squeaky voice.

"Of course, Miccy! I'll just go jump off a cliff now."

Micaiah looked around and spotted Elincia.

"IKE IS GOING TO JUMP OFF A CLIFF!" she screamed. Elincia ran over.

"No, Ike!!! Don't! Gym class is okay! Please don't kill yourself! A Crimean knight NEVER kills himself!"

"I'm a Crimean knight?" Ike asked, bemused. He flexed his muscles.

Kieran burst in on a horse, screaming his head off!

"NO YOU'RE NOT A CRIMEAN KNIGHT! HOW DARE YOU CALL YOURSELF A CRIMEAN KNIGHT! THOU BEAREST NOT THY HONOR OF THY CRIMEA!"

Ike turned to Micaiah.

"What?" he asked.

"I don't get it," she replied.

Elincia ran up to him.

"Now now, brave knight Kieran of thy Crimean kingdom," she cried, "Whilst friends with Micaiah, Ike shalt not rise to thy glory and honor. Safe is they position, brave knight and friend."

Micaiah frowned. "I'm having Jedi flashes…"

"Maybe it's Yoda speak," Ike suggested.

Geoffrey burst in on a white horse, in full Paladin armor.

"Kieran, thy dishonorable knight of thy wondrous Crimean land! How darest thou thy Princess upset? Thou should ashamed be of thyself, selfish knight of thy beautiful country!"

"Wait a sec," Micaiah said slowly. "Thy, thou, darest…"

"Yeah," Ike said. "Definitely Yoda." Micaiah nodded.

"Might be a bit of Vader, too."

Soren face-palmed himself. "It's not Yoda speak, you idiots," he muttered.

Ike and Micaiah turned to him in unison. "It's not?"

"If you two hadn't watched all six Star Wars movies last night, you might be more on task. But no, it screwed up your brains."

Kara skipped up, in a good mood. "Soren, I think it had more to do with the chocolate peanut butter raspberries on the Hawaiian pizzas. And the staying up until 5 AM."

"Could just be their blood type," Soren mused. Lucia ran forward out of the truck that Ike lost his shoe in.

"Princess of thy beautiful Crimea!" she cried. "Thy country is falling! Thy Lord uncle is at war!"

"With whom, pray tell?"

"Thy mad king of Daien, Ashnard!"

Everyone was frozen in shock. Well… not _everyone_…

"Ike!" Micaiah screamed. "Ike, look!"

"I know!" he yelled. He lunged at Lucia.

"Thou is a foul, treacherous, venomous-" She was cut off by Ike grabbing her foot.

"YOU CRUEL, VAIN, SELFISH, RUDE, DISGUSTING, HORRID WOMAN!" he shouted. Everyone stopped and stared at him. His blue eyes, usually innocent, wide and naïve, narrowed, and poison dripped from his every word.

"You're a…" he paused.

"Say it, Ike," Micaiah whispered, nervous but encouraging.

"A _shoe stealer_."

Everyone was quiet in shock of that accusation.

Ike took his shoe back.

"Now I have a shoe!" he said happily. He skipped off to gym with Micaiah.

Finally, everyone followed them. They entered the gym.

The lights were dimmed- no, they were off. There were rows of candles lighting the room, and mats on the floor. Soothing Indian music was playing. There were risers- well, they actually looked like an Aztec pyramid. On the top, Zelgius was meditating.

As though they were in a trance, Ike and Micaiah walked forward until they were right in front of Zelgius. They sat down, crossed their legs and began meditating.

"Ommmmmmmmm" Zelgius began, closing his eyes.

"Ommmmmmmmmmmmmmmm" Ike and Micaiah joined in, closing their eyes.

"Come, students of Ashera's school and siiiiiiit," Zelgius said in that same meditating singing voice. The students stayed on the side, a little weirded out. Ike and Micaiah threw their heads back and glared. They agreed to sit quite quickly.

"Ommmmmmmmmmm…." Zelgius started again. "Let us contact the Grand Manitoooooouuuuuu…"

"Who?" the students chorused.

"The GREAT SPIRIT who created the WORLD, of course," said a random little girl. "Sheesh, don't you guys ever read?"

"BECKY!" screamed some girl with a calic. "COME TO HIMEKO, MAHO MAHO!"

"AHHHHHH!" the little girl- who was apparently called Becky- screamed. She ran off. Everyone shrugged.

Zelgius began to make weird ballet-ish poses with his arms while his legs were still crossed.

"Aayoum…. Aayoum… Aayoum!" he sang. To everyone's surprise, Ike and Micaiah did exactly the same thing.

"Come…" Zelgius started in his singing voice. "Let us sit in a circle and contact the Grand Manitouuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu…"

"Aayoum, aayoum… Aayoum!!!!!!!!!!!" the three went. The Indian music had stopped. Everything was silent for a moment. All of a sudden…

Ike, Micaiah and Zelgius ran to the door and threw it open.

"AAYOUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

They all assumed ballet-like positions, and then ran outside. The other students followed them apprehensively.

They ran down all the flights of stairs- which really hurt, because Ike, Micaiah and Zelgius were running REALLY fast- and they ended up in the central area where all the students and teachers with free periods were, and where the whole schoo could see and hear. They sat on the gravel.

"AAYOUM, AAYOUM, AAYOUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

While they contacted Grand Manitou, Elincia leaned over to Soren.

"I thought they were sane," she whispered nervously. Soren lifted an eyebrow. His words didn't match his expression, though.

"Ike and Micaiah were up until 5 in the morning watching Star Wars and eating chocolate peanut-butter raspberries on Hawaiian pizzas. They might not be COMPLETELY sane… but this is worse than usual. And Zelgius, well… they know him and Sephiran better than anyone in the world- except for each other. The yoga-Grand-Manitou thing is just a REALLY old, complicated story, and I'd have to tell you a lot of classified information for you to understand. Which I will not do."

Elincia didn't seem to even notice Soren's explanation. She just frowned.

"Why do those two do everything together?" she pouted.

Soren glared a little, but Elincia didn't notice. "They've been all each other have had for 15 years- maybe longer."

"So?" she whined. "He can stop that now. I'M his girlfriend." Soren lost all his patience.

"Listen, Elincia Ridell Crimea," he said tightly. "You've spent every Christmas with your family, every birthday with your family, all your life with people who loved you and trusted you. Guess where they were when you had all your lovely fluffy time? They were holding hands, crying, on a battlefield, watching their parents get viciously murdered. They have never spent a single Christmas with their families, except for the occasions when Mist was with Ike. Zelgius and Sephiran were the people who took care of them, who kept them safe, who helped them _live_ again. The four of them may have incredibly vicious fights all the time, but they're all they have. Ike and Micaiah may act carefree and happy, but it's just a distraction. If they were serious, and… _sane_, let's say, then they would possibly go mad for real. It's a harsh world out there, _Princess_. Just because you've never been exposed to it, and just because you don't see it everywhere you look, doesn't mean that others around you, including your _boyfriend_, don't feel the weight of it on their shoulders _every single minute_."

Elincia was mildly shocked, to say the least. But she didn't really understand. It was a good story, she thought. It'd make a great book.

"AAYOUM, AAYOUM, AAYOUM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Looking at Ike and Micaiah now, though, believing that they felt the weight of the world on their shoulders was pretty hard.

Suddenly, the three Grand Manitou obsessors put their heads on the ground and their hands in front of them.

"CHILD'S POSE!" they screamed. Everyone did it out of intimidation. A few minutes later, the bell rang.

The three got up, put on identical smiles, and waved.

"Remember, child's pose always makes you feel better!"

When everyone was gone, Micaiah produced a checkboard. Ike and Zelgius stared at her intently.

"Part one: Complete," she said in a sinister voice. They all smiled evilly.

. . .

When Sephiran walked into Religion class, Ike and Micaiah were meditating on their desks.

He walked over to his desk slowly. This would be a long period. He could tell.

"All right, Ike and Micaiah, you can keep sitting on your desks. The rest of you-"

"But sir," came Astrid's voice, "they're doing it because-"

"I DON'T WANT TO KNOW!" he screamed. He took a deep breath. He cleared his throat.

"Excuse me," he said. "Now, today we will be learning about Ashera's three heroes. Can anyone tell the story to the class?"

Ike and Micaiah jumped up on the desk.

"WE CAN WE CAN WE CAN WECANWECANWECAN!"

Sephiran cleared his throat again.

"Anyone else?"

"ME ME ME ME MEMEMEMEMEMEMEMEMEME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Well then, I guess-"

"PICK ME! PICK ME! PICKMEPICKMEPICKMEPICKMEPICKMEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Ike and Micaiah," he said finally.

Ike smiled. "Well, sofirstofallYunegotreallysadandcriedandfloodedthecontinent…"

"…andthenyourwifeprofessorDheginseaandsomerandomlaguxweknownothingaboutkilledabunchofpeople…"

"… andthenyoutrappedherinyourmedallion!" Ike finished.

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran stared at a brick wall.

The brick wall stared back.

Sephiran started bashing his head against the brick wall.

It hurt.

He stopped bashing his head against the brick wall.

**Real life:**

After telling the censored version of the story and assigning a project where the students drew the Great War, Sephiran strolled around the class, feeling mighty relaxed.

He looked down at Soren's drawing. There was nothing.

"Soren, you have to draw something."

"I'm not drawing… _him_," he said, shuddering.

"Soren…" Soren sighed, and Sephiran smiled his normal smile and walked to his desk. A few minutes later, he walked back to Soren's desk.

Soren had drawn an extremely unflattering black dragon.

"Soren…"

"What?"

"You need to draw the _story_."

"Okay, fine."

Sephiran walked to his desk. He came back a few minutes later.

Soren had drawn a bunch of people stabbing a black dragon.

"Soren…"

"What?"

"You need to draw the story _the way it happened_."

"Okay, fine."

Sephiran walked back to his desk, feeling slightly less pleasant. He walked back a few minutes later.

Soren had drawn a black dragon killing a bunch of girls in puffy dresses with halos around their heads. There was a speech bubble saying "Oh no! It's Dheginsia, the cruel black-hearted mass-murdering psychopath life-ruiner!"

"Soren…"

"What?"

"You have to draw the story based on the _facts_, not on your personal opinions."

Soren stood up.

"You know what? Screw this." He sat down and scribbled furiously. Sephiran looked down.

Soren had drawn a dead black dragon.

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran looked at the baseball bat.

The baseball bat looked at Sephiran.

Sephiran began hitting his forehead with the baseball bat.

It hurt.

Sephiran stopped hitting his forehead with the baseball bat.

**Real life:**

Sephiran looked at Kara's drawing. His jaw dropped.

It looked _exactly _like the real thing. Goddess, even _he_ was in it.

"Kara, why am I in this?"

"Because you were there."

"No I wasn't."

"Then that isn't you in the picture."

"Then who is it?

"It's Lehran."

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran picked the baseball bat up again.

The baseball bat got picked up by Sephiran.

Sephiran started hitting his forehead with the baseball bat.

It hurt.

Sephiran kept hitting himself with the baseball bat anyway.

**Real life:**

Sephiran went over to where Elincia was. She had drawn all of the laguz in human form.

"Princess, the laguz weren't in human form," he said gently. Elincia looked up.

"Of course they were!" she said indignantly.

"Why would they fight in human form when their laguz form is so much stronger?"

"Because they want to be human."

"What gave you that idea?"

"That's why they want an alliance with Crimea, isn't it? So that they can have human kids and end the line."

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran looked at Elincia.

Elincia looked at Sephiran.

Sephiran raised his fist at Elincia.

Elincia started crying.

Sephiran lowered his fist.

**Real life:**

Sephiran looked at Pelleas' paper. It drew a bunch of people killing the laguz.

"Prince, you have to draw what actually happened."

"But that's bad propaganda!"

"What do you mean?"

"All laguz deserve to die!"

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran looked at Pelleas.

Pelleas looked at Sephiran.

Sephiran raised his fist at Pelleas.

Pelleas started crying.

Sephiran lowered his fist.

Sephiran looked at Elincia.

Sephiran looked back at Pelleas.

Sephiran grabbed both of their necks and started strangling them.

Sephiran felt a lot better.

**Real life:**

Sephiran went over to look at the Otaku's drawing. It was all black except for one big lightning bolt.

"Um… you."

"Yes?"

"You're supposed to draw what actually happened.

"But that _is_ what actually happened."

Sephiran couldn't argue with that.

The class finally ended.

"You can all go," he said pleasantly. Ike and Micaiah raised their hands. Sephiran ignored them. They talked anyways.

"But sir, don't you want to see-"

"NO! GET OUT!"

**Sephiran's Mind Theater:**

Sephiran smiled. He looked out his not broken glass window. He felt really good.

**Real life:**

Sephiran walked into his office. There wasn't a broken window anymore.

But he would have preferred a broken window.

There was a huge drawing of a defaced Ashera, a laguz with a question mark instead of a face, a dead black dragon, and him and Altina in the corner with a baby, looking sweet and fluffy and happy. The baby had silver hair.

Sephiran put on the intercom.

"Attention all students! Chocolate peanut butter raspberries on Hawaiian pizza consummation in the midst of watching Star Wars at 5:00 AM is henceforth PROHIBITED!"

Thirty seconds later, Ike and Micaiah appeared in his office.

"What?" he snapped.

"Sir, 5:00 AM is when we _stopped_ watching Star Wars…"

"… so we're assuming that watching it at 4:45 AM is perfectly fine!" They skipped out of the office, singing, "I know a song that gets on everybody's nerves!"

Sephiran groaned. This was really _not_ his day.

**A/N: I don't own Star Wars, PaniPoniDash, or Tamaki's mind theater. I know there was a serious part in here, but believe it or not there IS a storyline, so we hope you enjoy the serious parts as much as the funny parts (and there are way more funny parts planned)! By the way, if Yune updates really fast, it's because she already wrote the next chapter. She's not a cyborg. **

**Sephiran's parts were so fun to write! Especially the mind theater! And expect to see more Soren- I'm becoming a way bigger fan all of a sudden (have you SEEN him counterattack with a staff?) Tell me what you think of both!  
**

**Please REVIEW!**


	8. Misunderstanding

_**Yune's note: HEY!!! So here I am, updating this. Sorry it's taken so long for us to update, but it gave us much time to think about Guidance Tower. ^^ WELL, please enjoy and don't forget to review! Reviews are very important! **_

_**

* * *

  
**_

It was winter, Guidance Tower academy was caught in a blizzard… but that definitely didn't stop the students from causing problems.

**_"I'M SO DAMN COLD, DAMMIT."_**

**_"I'M DAMN MORE MUCH COLDER THAN YOU ARE."_**

**_"IKE THAT DOESN'T EVEN MAKE ANY SENSE."_**

**_"SHUT UP, I'M FREEZING."_**

**_"I BET I'M COLDER."_**

**_"NAH, DON'T DID THIS STORM COME FROM?"_**

**_"IKE, IT'S A BLIZZARD. THEY'RE SUPPOSED TO BE RANDOM."_**

**_"I'M NOT STUPID, UNLIKE YOU."_**

**_"SHUT UP, YOU'RE IN MY WAY."_**

**_"DON'T WORRY FAILCAIAH."_**

**_"WHAT'D YOU CALL ME?"_**

**_"FAIL."_**

Micaiah and Ike sat in front of their fireplace, shivering violently.

Micaiah pulled her phone out, Ike did the same.

Miccy: DON'T YOU DAMN FIGHT WITH ME, BUGGY.

Ike-poo: I'LL PROVE HOW MUCH COLDER I AM, MICAIAH.

Miccy: …WHAT…?

Kappa: KAPPA-POO?

Ike pulled the blanket off of himself (He was only in his boxers) and ran out the door. Micaiah stared blankly at the half naked teenager and then went to the door to see him running through the thick snow. Within a few seconds, he was already a great distance away. He ran like he was jumping over those track and field obstacles, being extremely enthusiastic about it also. If anyone had seen Ike at that very moment, you could have said he was running a marathon and was probably going to win it.

Ike, as he was running remembered that he was still only in his boxers. Suddenly he stopped, looked down and then back at the hero dorm. The door was closed and Micaiah turning the lock and yawning, then turning to go back to the fire. Now he was really starting to get cold. _**DAMN,**_ he thought to himself.

Luckily he was standing next to a dorm house; he knocked roughly and jumped up and down waiting for a reply.

The door opened, Ike felt like he was rising to heaven "Hello, who is it…? Oh… Ike?" it was the young girl, Faith.

"'tleavesomeonetosufferwouldyou?Comeonpleasejustletmein,thatwitchlockedmeoutandIthinkit'sreallycoldandIwon'tadmititbutshewasrightandshe',pleaseletmein." Ike explained in one breath to a very confused and embarrassed blond girl.

"Uh… come in?" she replied shakily.

When he walked in, he collapsed on the ground. "Thank you so much."

"It's no trouble… but could you please put some clothes on? It's still winter if you didn't know. I'm sure we have something you can wear."

She left the room to find something, suddenly the Otaku walked in.

"Did you run outside in your boxers?"

"Yup."

"Do you feel proud?"

"I get to prove to Altina how better I am."

"You two have been at it for years; I'm amazed you still are."

"Yeah, Yeah… hey, are you a girl or a boy?"

"That's classified." The Otaku replied, but in a voice that you really couldn't tell if it was a girl or a boy.

Faith returned with clothes, she advised Ike to take the underground rollercoaster. That's exactly what he did, and once arriving in the Hero dorm he was greeted by Ranulf and Soren.

"Ike, you have to be the most idiotic person. You went running outside in the winter, in your boxers and FINALLY, through a blizzard."

"Ah come on Soren, it was just a little fresh air."

"Yeah it must have been really fresh, not to mention cold." Ranulf grinned, he and Ike high fived.

Soren face palmed himself while sighing in despair.

Micaiah and Kara came dancing in, swinging from side to side.

"Oh hey Ike, I'm not cold anymore. After your huge butt moved out of the way, all the heat of the fire warmed me right up."

"MICAIAH!" he chased the silver haired girl up the stairs (Where did the stairs come from…? O.O) suddenly… "A-A-A-ACHOOOOO!"

The house literally jumped four feet in the air.

Ike had a cold.

The Hero dorm, Faith, the Otaku and Ranulf all went to the infirmary. Rhys (the doctor) didn't seem surprised, Sigrun (the school nurse) laughed softly and Laura was there for her daily nurse training.

"Ike, what exactly did you do?" Rhys asked worriedly.

"Uh…" he looked at Micaiah, who had a devilish grin on her face. Ike stared at her for roughly two minutes before replying, "I ran in the snow in my boxers."

"Oh dear…" Sigrun had a concerned look on her face.

"Ike was going for a morning jog, but didn't realize that there was a blizzard outside." The Otaku said suddenly, everyone turned.

"Well, next time… at least put clothes on. Here's something you can take." Rhys handed him a bottle and kindly shooed the group out of the office.

* * *

Shortly after, the student council met in the school boardroom.

All students were present, except for Ashera herself. Ike was in bed (it had been brought up by the school staff), sitting next to Soren.

The cabinet door opened, and out came none other than Ashera.

"Thank you for coming, despite this awful weather." She looked down at Ike "What did you do? Run in the snow in your underwear?"

Soren burst into laughter, so did the few others who knew what had happened.

"Either way, I'll be leaving this meeting to Sephiran and Zelgius. Have a nice afternoon."

She then proceeded back into the cabinet and closed the door without looking back.

Right on cue, the two of them ran in breathlessly.

Sephiran cleared his throat and fixed his jacket, Zelgius sat on a chair next to the bedridden Ike.

So the meeting began after a few minutes, switching from subject to subject. There were complaints, from the bathroom door locks to a leaking crack in the wall. Then there were suggestions for future events, Halloween night, Christmas break extensions and even an Easter egg hunt.

Zelgius shifted in his seat, leaned over and stared at Ike.

"What did you do to yourself?"

"Say sir,"

"Yes, Ike?"

"I think I'm going to die… would you listen to my death wish?" Ike turned to look at a horrified Zelgius.

"You see, I've always…"

Zelgius looked around before leaning down lower to hear Ike, "You've always what?"

"Well… I've always wanted to skip down a field with you, with pretty sunflowers and cute animals. Of course, holding hands and singing songs together."

"Ike, get those… dreams out of your head. Anything else you need to say?"

"A tea party."

"…"

Zelgius seemed extremely uncomfortable at that moment; Sephiran didn't notice his friend's uneasiness. Zelgius stayed silent for three minutes straight before Ike continued his fantasies.

"And I wanted to buy a puppy with you, and I wanted to bake a chocolate cake with you, and I wanted to hunt Kappa's with you in army outfits, and I wanted you to train with me, and I wanted to defeat you in battle and I wanted…"

"Ike those are the oddest thing that have come out of your mouth, aside from all the other crazy things you've said with Micaiah."

"I only meant the sunflower skipping thing…"

Sephiran came over, "What sunflower thing?"

Zelgius' eyes widened, _he can't know… anything but that, he just can't know what Ike said! _"NOTHING SIR, I ASSURE YOU… I SWEAR THAT NOTHING HAS BEEN SAID!"

Sephiran looked at Ike, then at Zelgius and then at the Otaku standing in front of the window. Slowly, his gaze returned to where Zelgius was.

"Are you hiding something from me?"

No one would think that Sephiran had a violent side, but the expression on his face was so scary and horrifying that all the students screeched as loud as they could and ran for the door. Sephiran, amazingly, got to the door before all of them and stood in the way.

"No one leaves this room, not… until. I. Have. Dismissed. Anyone. And. NOT UNTIL SOMEONE OUT OF THOSE TWO" he pointed to Ike and Zelgius "EXPLAIN THE SUNFLOWER THING."

Soren helped the sick Ike out of bed, Ike made his way over to Sephiran in a dramatic way. When he was standing in front of his Religion teacher, he put his hands on his shoulders and stared him straight in the eyes.

"Sir, I just want to be better friends with Mister Zelgius."

Sephiran imagined himself jumping off a huge cliff and into a deep hole, "That's all?"

Everyone in the room, nodded desperately.

The Old Geezer opened the door suddenly, looked at everyone and then began to mumble to himself, small elementary students were following closely behind. All of the poor children had I'm-about-to-pee-cause-I'm-Scared kind of faces.

"You see, when you all get to this age… chicken potpie for breakfast-…everything gets out of hand it all becomes a joke and the person leading the meeting can't do a job. Here's a good example of it, Mister Sephiran is being care… oooh pickle sandwich…"

The young class looked at each other and began asking questions.

"So mister Sephiran can't do his job?"

"What would Principal Ashera do is she found out?"

"I have to go to the bathroom."

"He looks silly."

"Hey did you see that video of him and that other guy doing the Macarena?"

Sephiran and Zelgius turned quickly and spotted the one who had said it, a young boy picking his nose.

After a very long agonizing meeting and interruption, the student council had been dismissed. Amazingly, the meeting had lasted all of 20 minutes. It was now noon and the Hero dorm returned to their dorm.

****

Micaiah collapsed into her chair by the fridge, sighing tiredly "THAT was the LONGEST 20 minutes of my life."

Soren and Kara nodded in agreement, Kara smiled "And next we have…"

Soren finished "Club meetings."

The Swim team was meeting at the Tower's pool.

Nephenee and Marcia were chatting, Sanaki was tying her extremely long hair and an unknown girl sat at the edge of the pool. She had long blue hair tied back, pale skin and black eyes.

"Are you Yue?" Micaiah asked, ticking off everyone's name except for one.

"Yes. Why?"

"I've never seen you before. Are you new to Guidance Tower?"

"No."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Uh… so have you been on the swim team before?"

"No, this would be my first year."

"Ah, I see. Any other clubs you joined this year?"

"…No."

Yue then proceeded to jumping in the pool, so did everyone else. Micaiah sighed and jumped in as well.

Ike had recovered from his cold.

He had never sat in such a boring club meeting, it was like listening to someone speak a completely different language and he was expected to understand ever single word said.

Pelleas had joined the science club as well, but Ike had been forced into it.

As Ike was falling asleep, Pelleas nudged him.

"What?" Ike glared at him

"Aren't you taking notes?"

"Like hell I'd take notes, such a boring thing to do. Why would I, even bother to take notes when this club doesn't interest me one bit?"

"Then… why did you join?"

"It… Ashera forced me to."

Edward, who was coincidently next to Ike, smiled "I feel your pain buddy. Ashera forced me as well."

Mia and Geoffrey sat in the row behind, Ike's eyes widened when he saw the Crimean Knight.

"What are you doing here? Not that I ever thought you were the science type…"

"Shut up. I didn't do well on my test, so.."

"FLUNKIE!" Ike shouted, standing up and pointing.

"I WOULDN'T TALK!"

"I'M ALREADY TALKING!"

"SINCE WHEN DID YOU DO GOOD IN SCIENCE?"

"SINCE I WAS IN PRESCHOOL, IDIOT."

"YOU DIDN'T LEARN SCIENCE IN PRESCHOOL!"

"HOW WOULD YOU KNOW?"

"IKE, GEOFFREY, SHUT UP WOULD YOU?" Titania screamed from the front of the room, Ike and Geoffrey sat down and closed their mouths.

"Now, let's begin…"

It was now close to the end of the day, but there was the final club meeting that was taking place in the library.

Elincia, Ike, Micaiah, the Otaku, Tibarnn, Naesala and Boyd all stood in front of a staircase leading to the underground library.

This club was one of the most dangerous, most frightening activities that the students did. Exploring the deep undergrounds didn't sound like a very difficult thing, but students needed to be equipped to go down. Food packages, extra clothes and other things were brought in case there was an emergency that kept the exploration club down longer than two weeks.

The teacher for the club was the Old Geezer, which didn't seem to surprise anyone. Though he didn't go down, he'd wait for their return.

Micaiah peered at Elincia and grinned, "So, what're you doing joining this club Princess?"

"I… Ike joined, and I thought it was interesting… so I joined."

The Otaku walked by her, "This isn't something to be taken lightly. This is a very serious club and it requires for the member to be ready to die in search of whatever they are looking for. This library has at least ten underground floors, each of them only gets more dangerous. When you signed up for this club, you basically signed that you are ready for anything that may happen to you down there." Elincia looked at the staircase and back at the Otaku "Did you hear about the man-eating chipmunk, or the elephant-eating bird?"

Tibarn turned "Since when do we have elephants?"

Micaiah and Ike both said in unison "Man-eating chipmunks? So behind their innocent little eyes their evil little monsters?"

The Otaku shrugged, "I don't know. Either way, there could be anything down there. Micaiah and Ike should know that."

They nodded.

Finally the of day club meetings finished.

The Hero dorm sat happily in front of the fire. Yes, surprisingly, happy.

For once in a long time, they all had a normal conversation about their day.

Suddenly, Ike sneezed.

* * *

_**Yune: Well, that was another chapter! Hope you enjoyed, and like I said at the beginning... don't forget to review!!! **_


	9. SNOWDAY!

SNOWDAY

Micaiah and Kara stared at the school website on their computer in their room.

"We don't have school?" Kara asked excitedly.

"We don't have school!" Micaiah cheered. The girls held hands and left the room, skipping down the halls.

"No school! No school! Lalalalalala!"

Ike burst out of the room.

"No school?" he asked.

"No school!" they chorused.

"Soren?"

"Yeah?"

"Is that true?"

"How should I know? I'm in bed."

"How do you know?" Ike asked the girls.

"The website!"

"Soren, go on the website!"

"Okay… Oh, yeah. Snowday."

"PAJAMA DAY!" Ike and Micaiah cheered. They went quiet and stared at each other.

"Ew…"

"I just said the same thing as her…"

"Mental scarring…"

They looked at each other, and stalked off. Needless to say, neither of them wore their pajamas to breakfast.

"Yo, Micaiah, make me some hot chocolate."

"No," she replied.

"Aw, please?"

"No! It's your turn."

"No it's not!"

"Then whose turn is it?"

"Umm…"

"Umm…" This conversation had ensued between Ike and Micaiah, by the way. Who else?

"Hey, Soren, who's turn is it?"

"…" Soren stared at his computer. "How should I know?"

Ike frowned. "How come you don't? It's all we did at Christmas."

"I don't spend Christmas with you, Ike." Ike scratched his head.

"You don't?"

"No."

"Huh… really?" asked Micaiah.

"Really and truly."

"Where do you spend Christmas, Soren?"

"Crimea. At the royal university."

"YOU GO TO SCHOOL AT CHRISTMAS????"

"… I just spend time in the library."

"What about Kara, then?"

"What about me?" Kara asked, with her smile on her face. Sothe walked in behind her.

"Kara, do you ever stop smiling?"

"No," Micaiah answered, "she smiles in her sleep, during exams, when we go to summer camp and her boat tips…"

Kara smiled through all of this. Ike stood up.

"Frown, Kara."

"Why? I'm not sad."

"Pretend to be sad. It's acting training."

"Are we in a play?"

"Maybe we'll do the umm… umm… talent show thing."

"Oh, okay." Kara stiffened up and tried to frown.

"Kara, frown."

"I AM frowning."

"No, you're just smiling really big."

"No! I'm making the corner of my lips- ahh!" Sothe was pushing the corner of her smile down. Or, trying to. He was failing.

"They're stuck!"

"I can't get them down!"

"Doesn't work!" By then, Ike was trying too. Pelleas walked in.

"Pelleas, call Ranulf! We need help!"

"Pelleas, do it!" In shock, the poor prince did. Ranulf came through the underground roller coaster moments later.

"RANULF!" Ike smiled big. Like, REALLY big.

"IKE!" Ranulf started pushing down on Kara's smile.

"Ranulf, you don't even know what we're doing…" Sothe said.

"Are you kidding? You're trying to make Kara frown! I've wanted to do this since forever."

"And since you're a laguz, it'll work!" said Sothe.

"Exactly! Laguz and Ike powers to the rescue!" Ike cried.

"No! I need my own attack name!"

"If you succeed this mission, you will be promoted to attack-named-after-you status!"

"Okay!"

"What video game world are they from?" Micaiah whispered to Soren. Soren cleared his throat.

"Guys, you sound really perverted. Do you want her to frown that bad?"

They nodded frantically. Soren sighed and turned to Kara.

"Kara, due to the need for war funds, candy companies are no longer making candy canes and chocolate."

A resounding crash echoes in the distance…

Kara frowned.

After Mist had to come over and help Micaiah bring the guys (except Pelleas) back to consciousness, the group (Ranulf and Mist included) sat at the kitchen table.

Micaiah punched her fist in her hand. "Now I remember who's turn it is!"

She looked at Ike.

"Who?" asked Mist, who always spent the Holiday with Sanaki.

"SEPHIRAN!" they shouted.

It was really loud. So loud that Sephiran heard from his office and came down through the roller coaster. He was the only person who they'd ever seen come out of it perfectly dignified.

"Yes?" he asked warily.

"Make us hot chocolate."

"Why?"

"It's your turn."

"But- Your Highness, what are you _wearing_?" Everyone looked around at Pelleas, who was wearing blue flannel pajamas with bananas on them. He was carrying a white blanket, too.

"…I'm not even going to comment," Soren said finally.

"Are we getting hot chocolate?" Kara smiled again. "Yay! People are still making chocolate! Can we have peppermint sticks, too?" She turned to Sephiran. He sighed. It was hard to resist puppy dog eyes.

Catching on, Micaiah and Ike made puppy dog eyes.

"Fine," Sephiran grumbled. I'll go make hot chocolate." The trio smiled really big. Ranulf was bouncing on the balls of his feet.

"That'll be… me, Ike, Micaiah, Kara, Soren, Sothe, and pajama boy. Oh, and you, I s'pose, professor. Eight in total. Dang it! I wanted an even seven!"

"Seven's not even…" Pelleas cut in.

"Oh, whatever!"

Sephiran obediently went to the cupboard and got out what he needed to make hot chocolate.

"But I'm only making it for Ike and Micaiah."

"WHAT?!" screamed everyone else.

"Oh, Mist, if you go get Sanaki I'll make some for the two of you as well."

"SEPHIRAN!"

"Okay, Kara too. But that's it."

"Fine by me," Soren replied. "I don't want hot chocolate."

"Well, I DO!" screamed Ranulf.

"ME TOO!" screamed Sothe.

And Pelleas just stood there looking totally lost in his dark blue banana pajamas.

Sephiran started making hot chocolate.

"Only for the people I named," Sephiran said again in his clear, calm voice.

"But why?" Ranulf sulked.

"Ike and Micaiah-" Suddenly, Elincia came through the roller coaster looking frightened. Ike rushed over.

"Ikey-poo, I hate roller coasters," she shuddered.

"It's okay," he soothed. "Look at Pelleas and everything will get better."

She started laughing when she saw him, her hand flying to cover her mouth.

"Better?"

"Ye-yes," she giggled.

"So what's going on?"

"Sephiran is making hot chocolate for only Ike, Micaiah, Mist, Sanaki and Kara. And himself."

"Why?" she asked, turning to Sothe, who had answered her previous question. Mist and Sanaki came out of the roller coaster, giggling.

"Ike and Micaiah deserve it," he said simply.

Utter silence.

"Well, they've managed not to blow anything up," he amended.

_Boom_.

They all rushed to the window. A few dorms had exploded to dust.

"Ike! I told you that Alkali Metals were explosive!"

"But Micaiah, you didn't say it'd blow up all the dorms!"

"Well, look what you've done! Now we lost three experimental bases!"

_Boom._

"And we lost the old garages from before there were roller coasters!"

_Boom._

"AND NOW YOU LOST US OUR SECRET ISLAND! ARE YOU MAD?"

Elincia turned to Sephiran.

"I didn't realize that there was a time when there weren't roller coasters here," she said.

"There used to be horse-drawn carriages," he told her.

"Why did you have a garage? AND WHY DID YOU GET RID OF THEM?"

"Ike and Micaiah didn't like the carriages. They got Vespas for Christmas and rode them everywhere. Right, Soren??

"By everywhere, Sephiran means down the halls, up the walls, on the roof, underwater, and into bed," he told her.

"And who gave them the Vespas?"

"Sephiran."

Said man had the decency to at least look sheepish.

"I guess I take that back," he said. "I'm surprised. They've never gone as far as to destroy an island, though."

"Aren't you worried about the dorms? What about the students?"

"Empty dorms," Sephiran said. "Here. Ike, Micaiah, you're hot chocolate's ready."

By ready, he meant topped with half a foot of whipped cream, two dozen baby marshmallows and three peppermint sticks in each.

"That's how they eat their hot chocolate?" Elincia asked.

"Drink, more like it."

"Professor…"

"Yes, that's how."

"And you know this because…?"

"I've been making them hot chocolate for sixteen years, Princess."

She dropped it.

Once the hot chocolate was downed, Ike and Micaiah smiled at each other.

"Snowball fight!" they cheered in unison. They both stared mischievously at Sephiran.

"Fine, fine, I'll go get Zelgius," he said.

The two ran off, and where at the front door in their coats and boots seconds later.

"Ikey-poo, aren't you wearing snowpants?"

"Snowpants are for sissies," he said.

Micaiah smiled teasingly at him. "Ikey-poo?" She mouthed.

"Shut your trap," Ike growled.

. . .

Elincia blinked. And blinked again.

How had this happened?

The entire grounds of Guidance Tower Academy were divided in three. On one side, there was team Micara, which was led by Micaiah and Kara, with Sothe there too, along with a bunch of students, like Laura, Jill, Aran, Fiona, Mia, and for some reason, Pelleas, though he was just sitting around.

On the other side, there was team Riken, led by Ranulf, Ike and, reluctantly, Soren, their strategist. Up there with Ike was also Boyd, Oscar, Kieran, Nephenee, Geoffrey, Shinon, Gatrie, Lethe, Lyre, Astrid, Danved, Davned (no one knew whether they were twins or the same person), Reyson, and loads more. Oh, and Elincia.

Finally, the third team, Selphius, was led by Sephiran and Zelgius, along with Sanaki, which brought along Mist, her best friend, Tanith, Sigrun and Marcia, along with Makalov, who was forced to betray the royal knights at his sister's whim, Tormod, Muriam and Vika, who opted to side with Begnion and take on both Ike AND Sothe (well, Tormod decided), and more people.

And then there were Tibarn and Naesala, who didn't choose a team and instead flew around dropping buckets of snow on people's heads. Though, it seemed to Elincia that Tibarn had allied himself with Riken, though Naesala was taking favors from Sanaki, Micaiah and Leanne, who had stayed with her brother but wasn't fighting. So the battlefield was chaos.

Until the Ashera and Yune stepped out onto the roof.

"Sister, look! There throwing snowballs! I want to play!"

"The fun is pointless if there is nothing to aim at. Here," she said, in a rare moment of kindness for Yune, and waved her hand. The Begnion Senate appeared in the middle of the field. Yune jumped down to join Mist and Sanaki, and Ashera stepped into a cabinet and disappeared.

"Hey, why did she bother to step in a cabinet in the first place?" Ranulf asked.

"I just want to know where it came from," Ike muttered. "I mean, she was on the roof."

"Think she really disappeared? It'd be creepy if she was still there."

"But how did she get it up there?"

"Magic."

"But-"

"C'mon, Ike!" Soren stood up suddenly.

"I have a perfect plan," he announced.

Seconds later, Naesala was off asking if Micara wanted to join Ike.

"Sure!" Kara answered. The leaders of Riken and of Micara got together.

"So, what should we call ourselves?"

"BELIEVERS IN MAGIC!" Ranulf shouted. Micaiah didn't ask. She, Ike and Ranulf just looked at each other. Seconds later, they started clapping their hands.

"I DO BELIEVE IN FAIRIES, I DO, I DO! I DO BELIEVE IN FAIRIES, I DO, I DO!" and so they continued.

And so the war went on, Believers vs. Selphius, throwing snowballs at each other and the senate. Lekain fell on his butt. Finally, Yune erased their memories of the event- for the most part- and sent them back.

"Guys, its 11:39. Past curfew. And Ashera's still in the cabinet."

"Knew it!" Ranulf cheered. Ashera opened the door.

"Bed. All of you." She closed the cabinet door and actually disappeared that time.

**A/N: Sorry for the wait, I got really sick! Yune'll post the next chapter, probably much sooner than this one took.**

**-Ashera**


	10. To Gallia!

_**A/N: Hi everyone! It's me, Yune. Sorry I haven't updated in a while...... I was really very busy. It took much longer than expected to write this, it takes 8 pages on WORD!  
**_

_**Soooo, enjoy this chapter and don't forget to review! We love reviews!

* * *

**_

It was a fearsome showoff between four individuals, a battle never seen in the time of the legendary heroes. No one could stay in the room since the atmosphere was so tense. The time of day was 9 AM, and the location was inside the board room. There was a sign on the door that read: **ENTER AT YOUR OWN RISK… REALLY.**

Soren sat on the outside of the room, typing away at his laptop.

Elincia and Lucia were walking by and stopped to look at the note, Elincia sideway glanced at the black haired boy on the floor.

"Do I _honestly_ have to tell you? Can't you just continue walking and simply ignore the sign?" Soren closed the laptop.

"Is Ike in there?" she asked.

He wasn't sure if he should say no, but he couldn't be rude. "Yeah, he is. Why?"

"I just wanted to say goodbye…"

"Don't worry, I'll tell him."

Lucia grabbed the princess' arm and fake laughed, "WELL, gotta go now!"

"Lucia unhand me! I'll just go in…" she turned the doorknob, Soren sighed "Oh my god, what are they doing?"

Inside, four people sat around a table wearing masks. She looked around, afraid at first and then walked towards the small group. It appeared as if they had been there for a few days, empty bottles and left over food. The room was dark, the windows barred with wood planks which were nailed to the Tower's walls. There was absolutely no evidence of recent movement. Elincia peered at the table, where various little squares were placed on a board.

"Ike?" she asked hesitantly.

A chuckle escaped the mouth of one of the four "How can I help the princess?"

She looked at the person confused, "Could someone explain what," she motioned to the table "this is?"

"Simple. A game of Scrabble."

Yes, **SCRABBLE.**

All removed their masks, revealing Ike, Micaiah, Ranulf and Tibarn. All were evidently tired, since there were rings under their eyes.

"Well, that raps up our first session. Be prepared Ike, I don't take losses that easily." Tibarn smiled broadly and left the room, grabbing his jacket and putting it under his muscular arm.

Ranulf was having a laughing fit, (lack of sleep) and then placed his hand on something that made him successfully fall on the floor. Ike and Micaiah went over to look at the now sleeping cat; both broke into a hysterical laughter and ran around the room waving their arms.

When the two stopped running, they collapsed on the floor and stopped moving altogether. Elincia looked at the game board.

GEYSER

A

MADKING

LOSE I

E N

P D E N M A R K

H E

I S

R T R A N Q U I L I T Y O F G O L D O A

A U

B L A C K K N I G H T I

D

A

N

C

E

T

O

W

L E H R A N

R

Well, that was a sample of what she could make of all of it. Now she knew a lot of English, but she was _positively sure_ that most of the words on the board didn't even _come close_ to being even a fraction of English. She presumed it was perhaps a language that was unknown to human kind, and it really wouldn't surprise her at this point while she attended the famous Guidance Tower Academy.

A few minutes later, Sephiran and Zelgius walked in.

"What in the Goddess' name happened here?" Sephiran was already mentally preparing himself for the outcome of all this.

Zelgius grabbed Ike by the collar of his shirt and picked him up, though he appeared to be out cold. Zelgius almost thought he was holding up a dead corpse… but was relieved when the boy mumbled in his ever deep sleep.

"Sir, I think they were playing scrabble…" Elincia pointed to the table.

Sephiran looked and seemed completely unsurprised that his name was there. He then noticed Micaiah and sighed.

The version of scrabble they had played was on a fairly bigger board and the amount of letter squares was about 800. Sephiran couldn't spot a dictionary, though why did he even bother to expect there to be one in the first place.

"Micaiah and Ike do this every spring break, don't worry Elincia. They'll be perfectly fine." He smiled.

Ike awoke to the sound of three people arguing.

"They will find a different way to go… no, Ike and Micaiah would find some new invention to get there." It was Zelgius.

"I see your point, both of you. I can assure you that they will walk to Gallia along with all the others." That was obviously Ashera.

"I really don't want Micaiah walking but…" That was too easy, Sephiran.

Ike sat up and looked at Ashera, "YOU, OLD WOMAN!"

Ashera raised an eyebrow, "Yes, Ike?"

He hesitated, looking from side to side "What were you three talking about? Where am I? Why is Micaiah on the couch and why am I on the floor?"

"It's being polite Ike; Micaiah is a lady after all." Sephiran answered.

Ike snorted, "Lady? Micaiah a lady? HA, she's anything but a lady!"

An Inuit sculpture suddenly flew towards Ike. Luckily enough, he dodged it by simply moving his head. Sadly, it went right through the stained glass window.

"I'm not deaf, you know." Micaiah looked around her, confused "Where are we? Why am I sleeping on the couch and why is Ike on the ground?"

Ashera cleared her throat, which made everyone stare at her.

"Firstly, we are in one of my special discussion rooms high in the tower. Secondly, we are talking about how we are sending you to Gallia. We have decided to make you all walk there, no exceptions."

Both Ike and Micaiah stared at each other, same calm expressions. They then looked Ashera straight in the eye and in unison;

"Agreed."

Zelgius gave a doubtful glance to Sephiran, "You agree to walk?"

"Yes."

Sephiran shrugged, leaving the room with Zelgius. Ashera nodded and walked towards the wall, Ike and Micaiah were expecting another weird exit from her.

Instead, surprisingly, she turned around and crossed her arms.

"You have no problem with walking, none at all?"

Micaiah smiled happily, "Quite honestly, I find it much better than all the other ways we've tried out before. We once canoed all the way to Gallia, though most of us either fell out of the boats or went along the wrong way and dropped down a waterfall." She laughed, as if remembering something funny, "What was that other time? Right! We tried a transportation spell, where all of us ended up in different parts of Tellius and had major indigestion because it went so fast. There's that other time when we swam… but well, I think you're mad at me Miss Ashera so I'll stop now." She fell quiet, her smile fading.

"Either way, go get ready. You all leave tomorrow, bright and early." Ashera opened a door in the floor and stepped into it, closing it with much force.

They left the room quietly and walked down the Tower's stairs.

Ike had been unusually quiet; to Micaiah it seemed somewhat suspicious.

"You okay?" she asked.

"Yeah."

They walked into the locker room, where everyone was standing in front of a very decorated locker.

The Otaku saw the two "Hey did you hear about this locker?" both shook their heads "Apparently it leads to Narnia."

Everyone gasped; Gatrie laughed "Narnia doesn't really exist right? I mean, well… I mean, I believed it did when I was a kid but…"

Shinon looked at him, "You what? Man, I'm way too cool to be part of this little talk."

Elincia patted Ike on the back, getting his attention.

"I hope you'll enjoy your vacation in Gallia…"

"Have fun in Crimea, Elincia." He smiled, "Just make sure you don't get sent to jail." He hugged her and left for his dorm.

She was left utterly confused, but waved after him.

Meanwhile while everyone wasn't looking at the Narnia locker, a head popped out. Micaiah and Sothe looked at it; none other than Ashnard the Mad King was there.

"Aw Goddess sticks, this ain't the meeting place!" with that, the door closed.

Sothe and Micaiah agreed to ignore the scene.

It was finally time for everyone to pack their bags, which they would have to carry themselves. Each student would be given a map to Gallia, and then they would travel in small groups of six or seven depending on the number of travelers.

It was finally the next day and everyone was leaving, whether it was with family or staff members leaving for Gallia. The number of hours it took to leave Begnion was close to five, so in total the trip took about a day and a half.

Titania was wearing hiking shoes and a jogging outfit.

"So is everyone here? I don't really care about the answer, I'll just name you all anyway…"

"Edward?"

"Yep."

"Leonardo?"

"Present."

"Ilyana?"

"…here…"

"Nephenee?"

"Yes m'am."

"Heather?"

"You know it!"

"Mist?"

"Here Miss Titania!"

"Oscar?"

"Present."

"Boyd?"

Silence, "Boyd?"

"HERE!"

"Rolf?"

"Present!"

"Shinon?"

"Whatever…"

"Gatrie?"

"Right here!"

"Mia?"

"Not here!"

"Alright, I think that pretty much wraps everyone up. All the people that come from Gallia or around there have already left and are traveling with another group of teachers."

"MISS TITANIA! YOU MISSED US! YOU DIDN'T CALL OUR NAMES!"

"Ike, Micaiah… you're standing right in front of me. I'd have to be completely blind to not see you."

Both smiled and began walking with their hiking bags that were even taller than them, and also appeared to be quite heavy.

Around noon, the students found themselves at the bottom of a huge mountain. Titania confirmed that the only way to get across it was climbing and then climbing back down again on the other side.

Mia looked at the large rock and sighed heavily, "I am _**NOT**_ climbing that hunk of good- for-nothing stone

Oscar smiled "It can't be that bad, we _have_ climbed worse than that."

Boyd laughed "Compared to the last few trips, this one doesn't seem as dangerous! We're just walking to Gallia, what could ever go wrong?"

Things did go wrong, and things ended up being very very dangerous.

* * *

Ike and Micaiah sat by the river, enjoying the scenery somehow while Edward and Leonardo sat behind them. All four looked extremely dirty and their clothes were torn.

"How long have we been lost?" Ike asked quietly.

"Five days and four nights, if things keep going this way… we'll be spending our whole break being lost in the woods." She replied, laughing a little.

Leonardo looked at them, "Don't you guys know how to get there? Isn't there a river that leads to Gallia?"

Edward smiled, "You're amazing Leo!"

Ike stood up; a wide smile on his lips "I JUST GOT THE BEST IDEA! WE SHOULLD TAKE THE RIVER ALL THE WAY UP!"

Micaiah, who was very grumpy now, was looking at the river from side to side "You just repeated the same thing as Leo… and YEAH, let's go by the river that's twenty feet deep and guess which way we're supposed to go." She turned to Ike "IF I DON'T GET TO GALLIA SOON, I MIGHT JUST KILL A BEAR!"

Ike laughed, "Hopefully a bear doesn't actually show up!"

* * *

Oscar, Rolf and Mist sat in a circle around a fire. Just a few minutes ago they had caught fish; it was currently cooking on sticks in the fire.

"Well, yet again we get lost…" Mist was sulking.

"It isn't that bad Mist… Ike will definitely find us and bring us to Gallia!" Rolf tried smiling, but Mist knew he was even more scared than she was.

Oscar patted his back, "Its okay Rolf, Mist. Nothing bad will happen to us, we're pretty safe…"

Someone was screaming like a girl in the distance, and was sprinting into the clearing. Oscar leaned back to look, Mist and Rolf started to panic.

"BEAR, BEAR! GUYS, SERIOUSLY!" Boyd came into view, his clothes torn apart.

They all looked at each other and then back at Boyd, where a bear stood right behind him.

"Let me guess, the bear is right behind me and looks like he's about to kill me."

Oscar grinned, "I have an idea, let's follow that path and run for our lives."

They all agreed and sprinted away, leaving the bear to eat their untouched fish.

Boyd smiled, "Hey, it'd be bad if thing from the Lord of the Rings shows up!"

* * *

Heather, Ilyana and Mia were walking on a rocky mountain top, wearing long capes and goggles.

"HEY where do you think we're going?" Mia asked, turning around.

"…Gallia…" Ilyana replied.

"We know that much honey, but we ain't goin' in the right direction." Heather tripped on a rock, on the ground she noticed something shiny. "Hey is this a ring?"

Mia looked, "Yeah looks like it. It has some writing on it…"

A little creature suddenly appeared, scaring the three girls "Precious…"

Mia screamed "OH MY GODDESS, WHAT IS THAT THING!" without realizing, she kicked the thing off the mountain and could hear it yelling as it fell.

"Well, that'll take care of things… let's keep on goin' to Gallia."

Mia suddenly giggled, "Hey wouldn't it be funny if Kappa's start showing up?"

* * *

And so they did.

Ike and Micaiah having ditched Leonardo and Edward… were on their way down the river. Suddenly, two figures emerged from the bushes.

Faith and the Otaku stretched and waved.

A tent was set up and it was obvious that moth had spent a few days there.

"Wait, since when are you guys coming with us?" Ike asked, looking at their campsite.

Faith smiled happily, "Silly, we wouldn't want to miss the fun!"

"We waited for you guys; we even made lunch for you." The Otaku revealed a luxurious meal waiting for Ike and Micaiah.

Ike thought he was daydreaming, so did Micaiah. They both took out 3D glasses and leaned forward.

A kappa was sitting nearby; playing on a guitar and another was playing a banjo.

Ike took his iPod Touch out and put the speaker on full blast, a song that perfectly matched the Kappa's.

* * *

Micaiah stopped and looked ahead, the Kauku caves were the only way to cross into Gallia. The problem was, there was a possible chance that they arrive in Goldoa.

"Ike, we have to go through there." She pointed.

"Apparently so. Maybe everyone's already there."

There was another problem… one of the groups was already heading back towards the tower. The rest were close to the cave and discussing whether they should actually walk in. There was also the odd chance of ending up in Goldoa, which would be just their luck.

Ike and Micaiah agreed that it was good that Soren wasn't there with them; things would end very, very badly.

"Hey Ike, I think we're going _the wrong way_." Micaiah nudged him.

"How am_ I_ supposed to know where I'm _going_?" he asked, turning to Faith and the Otaku.

"Ike, use the map on your iPod." The Otaku suggested.

Faith smiled "That might help."

He took it out and looked down; when he opened the application there was a note from Ashera.

**You will by no means cheat your way out of this. Walk the whole way you lazy child.**

"Well, I think it's this way."

And so they all ended up going into Goldoa, every single group except the one that had found their way back to the academy. They stood dumbfounded at the entrance of the huge castle.

All looked at each other and then around. They were extremely confused but angry at Ike who had taken a wrong turn.

"_Ike, I'm going to kill you_." Micaiah mouthed angrily.

With much time and effort, all the students found themselves in Gallia.

Waiting for them was, Ranulf, Tibran and Reyson.

Ranulf laughed at Ike, who wore his shirt on his head and barely had any clothing that was still wearable.

"You look like you've been lost for**_ days_**!" he laughed, holding onto a tree.

Tibarn agreed, "When did you all leave?"

Micaiah side glanced at Ike "_Six days total_, counting today."

Reyson couldn't hold back his laugh; he covered his mouth to try to control himself.

"**SIX DAYS**!" Ranulf wasn't able to stop, he kept laughing.

All three laughed all the way to the castle, where everyone was there.

This was only the beginning of the break; more was definitely on its way.

Kappas were the **_least_** of their troubles.

* * *

**_OH DEAR, why do I feel like this could have been better?_**

**_The Lord of the Rings is not something I own, I only burrowed it for this chapter. My friend can do a perfect imitation of it. _**

**_Well, review please!  
_**


	11. And so on and so forth

**A/N: Hi everyone! Its Ashera again- I hope you like this chapter.**

**Disclaimer: … I don't own Fire Emblem.**

Despite the struggle that everyone had gone through, Gallia was still one of the nicest parts of Tellius. Unlike the beorc nations, Gallia was abundant in nature. There was hardly any pollution. The sky was flawlessly azure for as far as the eye could see. Spring had come early in Gallia. The grass was already sparkling green, the flowers in bud, and the powerful sun radiant.

Ike and Micaiah were well known to recover incredibly fast from their ordeals. A few bottles of Gatorade later, they were half-skipping- half-running down the gravel path that lead to the castle. Ranulf was running after them, muttering something about how unfair it was that they could have this kind of energy after walking for six days, and Tibarn was torn between beating everyone by flying and staying behind with Reyson.

To no one's surprise, Ike and Micaiah reached the massive fortress first. The guards ignored them, having known them for the past 16 years. As they sprinted up through the great hall, most of the students raised their heads and saw, to their utter amazement, King Caineghis greeting the pair with not a nod or a smile, but an enormous bear hug.

"Ike! Micaiah! I haven't seen you two for ages!" He exclaimed. He suddenly noticed that the two were incredibly clean, even though they hadn't- supposedly- bathed for six days.

Luckily, the lion king was saved from asking the awkward question. Ashera walked up beside the king and stared at her two most troublesome students.

"How the hell are you two so clean?"

"Magic," Ike replied mysteriously.

He and Micaiah wouldn't say anything more, to Ashera's intense frustration. Finally, she gave up.

"Well, since everyone else is dirty and needs a shower, you two can have the honor of taking out the trash."

Now, as we've already discussed, Gallia is an incredibly clean nation. Castle Gallia and its surroundings have almost no pollution. This is usually admired. However, the reason that Castle Gallia is so clean is that the nearest garbage dump is about eighty miles away. So taking out the trash involved Ike and Micaiah actually involved them walking about the same distance that they'd taken six days to walk previously.

But Ike and Micaiah weren't infamous pranksters for nothing. They managed to hijack a truck and drive most of the distance, so to Ashera's fury, the whole shenanigan took about two hours. When they got back, they were smiling hugely.

"How did you do that?" Sephiran asked as he walked them to their rooms.

"Magic," they repeated.

Since everyone else was bathed and settled in, Ike and Micaiah were sharing the only remaining room. It was a nice room. There were two double beds, one next to the window and one next to the door. Unfortunately, Ike and Micaiah didn't see it that way.

"I WANT THE WINDOW BED!"

"I WANT THE WINDOW BED!"

"THE WONDERBED IS MINE!"

"… Ike, did you just call it the Wonderbed?"

"… SO WHAT IF I DID!" Micaiah started laughing. Ike, in his anger, picked up the bedside table and threw it at her. She reacted just in time and threw it back, along with a flowerpot. Soon, the two were juggling every piece of furniture other than the bed whilst yelling the words "thing" and "bug" in very loud voices.

The door opened, and Soren was suddenly hit in the face with a cream pie. Now, how said cream pie ended up in Ike and Micaiah's room is currently unknown, since there was no food in the room and no kitchen. Our only guess is that the magical cowlick fairy was behind it. Or Dumbledore. Anyhow, Soren was hit in the face with a cream pie. He pulled a tissue out of the tissue box and wiped his face. He then said:

"What the hell?"

Ike and Micaiah dropped all the stuff, and it mysteriously ended up all organized. Soren shook his head.

"I came to make sure that the two of you were alive after these 6 days."

Ike's face lit up. "SOREN!" he shouted, running over to hug his best friend. Soren dodged the incoming Ike and ran away.

As he really had nowhere to go, he headed to his room. He walked in and sat on his bed, completely ignoring Pelleas, who had somehow ended up his roommate. He opened his computer and began to type very fast.

Pelleas cleared his throat. "Ahh, Soren, is it okay if I go on wallscreen Skype?" Somehow, he'd installed a wallscreen in the room.

Soren nodded absentmindedly.

Ashnard's face came into view.

"Ahh, my son. I- wait."

They all waited.

"Who the hell is that?"

Soren looked up. He blinked. Ashnard fell back in his chair.

"Ahh! What are you doing here? Go away and stop bothering me!" Soren was frozen in his seat. Ashnard took a deep breath and collected himself.

"So, lad, what is your name?"

Soren ran for his life.

"Pelleas!" cried the mad king. "After that boy!"

Pelleas looked out the window. Soren had somehow hailed a taxi and was now out of the building.

"He's gone."

"Ahh, crackers!"

. . .

Soren had reached a random town in Gallia. He sat on a bench in front of a fountain, doing absolutely nothing.

A few girls walked by. They giggled.

"Aww, he looks so lonely," one said.

"He's sulking!" said another.

"KAWAII!" gushed the last one.

The girls decided to buy him something to drink. They got him a root beer float.

Soren sat on the bench, stared at the fountain, and drank his root beer float. It was surprisingly good.

Until someone placed a hand on his shoulder.

"I believe that it is time you and I had a chat," said King Dheginsea.

Soren spat out his root beer float as Dheginsea dragged him along. To any onlookers, it would seem that a man was just dragging his troublemaking son back home. Unfortunately for Soren, there was more to it than that.

Soren threw out the root beer and was shoved into the back of the car. Dheginsea got into the front and started to drive.

"So, your name is Soren, is it?"

Soren stared at his grandfather for a minute, and then nodded.

"Tell me, which of your parents named you?"

Soren was confused for a moment, until he finally shrugged.

Dheginsea sighed. "My daughter Almedha ran away many years ago." Soren tensed up. _Is this what he wants to talk about?_

"She had met a beorc man, it seemed, and he had offered to marry her."

Soren remained silent.

"That man was, at the time, a Daien prince." Soren's eyes widened. He'd known all about his mother's side- but nothing about his father.

"He would soon become known as Mad King Ashnard." Soren gripped the seat so that his knuckles went white. Dheginsea was a fast driver. He was hoping that they'd reach a point where he could get out within the next 15 seconds.

"She cut off all ties with me, and gave Ashnard a son within the year." Soren's nails started to rip through the leather seats.

"But Ashnard didn't want an heir to succeed his reign, for he never planned to end it. He wanted a weapon, a weapon that would frighten all his foes away.

"He wanted a Goldoan Black Dragon.

"When a laguz… is with a beorc, the laguz looses all their power. Therefore my daughter could no longer serve Ashnard as a weapon. But she could serve him as a bribe.

"So when Ashnard threatened to kill Almedha and her infant son, my very own heir sacrificed himself and went to Ashnard.

"Surely you've heard about the experiments that Ashnard conducts, the ones he calls "feral ones." And I'm sure you've heard of his 'mighty wyvern', Rajaion…" Dheginsea turned in his seat. "Do you understand yet?"

Soren dashed out of the door. As he looked up, he saw a flying phone exiting Ike and Micaiah's room. _Oh dear…_

. . .

As he ran through the building, he came across Ranulf and the lion he assumed was the king's nephew, Skrimir.

"Do you really think I should attend Guidance Tower Academy?" the redheaded laguz was asking.

"Definitely!" Ranulf enthused. "Right, Soren?"

"… Whatever," mumbled the raven-haired mage as he sprinted up the stairs.

. . .

Micaiah and Ike were lying on their beds when the phone rang. Ike, who wanted an excuse to get off of the non-wonderbed, sat up and answered it.

"Hello?" he said.

"Hi, Ikey," giggled a feminine voice. "It's Elincia!"

"_Who is it?_" mouthed Micaiah.

Ike frantically handed the phone to her.

"THIS IS THE MAD HATTER SPEAKING. YOU ARE LATE FOR TEA." Micaiah threw the phone out the window. A few moments later, Soren rushed in.

"What was that?" he panted.

"Elincia Ridell Crimea," they said in unison.

"Poor girl," Soren muttered.

Ike and Micaiah were getting bored.

"Hey, let's go bother Zelgius!" they exclaimed.

. . .

Zelgius was walking down the hall minding his own business.

"BOTHER BOTHER BOTHER BOTHER -" Zelgius lifted up his hand and the duo fell over.

He walked over to Sephiran.

"Master, sorry to intrude, but… what shall the students be eating? We can't depend on Castle Gallia for the rest of the trip."

Sephiran nodded. "Yes, yes, too true, my friend. I suppose we shall simply go shopping for food."

Zelgius swallowed down his fear and nodded. "As you wish, master." Sephiran sorted through some files and then pulled out sunglasses. The two left.

. . .

As the two stared down the halls, they realized what a bad idea this was. They attempted to get through the massive hallways of… food… but they couldn't. They simply couldn't. So they prayed for a miracle.

Ike and Micaiah promptly walked through the doors.

Immediately Sephiran felt better. Ike and Micaiah went downtown all the time, and so were always assigned the grocery shopping duty. They knew what they were doing!

Zelgius wasn't so sure. This was those two. They were… well, _them_. But he didn't say anything when Ike and Micaiah were given the shopping cart.

And he didn't say anything when they came back with 11, one of which was only chocolate. In fact, he was impressed that they'd managed that much self-restraint.

So the merry crew headed back.

. . .

Ike was feeling like impulsively breaking the rules… by accident.

He and Micaiah had noticed that Ashera left the teacher's table rather suddenly. Now, she always did that, but Ike and Micaiah weren't all that observant, and the fact that they'd noticed it once made them feel really special.

They brought Boyd, Mia, Gatrie, Shinon, Kara, and Soren with them.

Boyd was really excited. He'd noticed Ashera leaving for the first time, too!

Mia's roommates were watching Lord of the Rings, but she was still freaked out by that incident while they were travelling.

Gatrie thought spying on teachers was so cool!

Shinon was too cool to do what he was told, so he came along.

Soren didn't exactly have a choice.

And Kara was being Kara.

They stood outside her door until they heard the words "glee club" and then got sucked in a trap door.

"Wah! We're all going to die!" yelped Gatrie.

"Whatever," muttered Shinon.

"Ashera watches _Glee_?" whispered Ike.

"Ashera watches _Glee?_" whispered Micaiah.

"Shaddup," snapped Soren.

"I like Glee!" said Kara, smiling.

They all landed back in the dining room.

"Well, that was special," muttered Soren.

"I'm too cool for this," said Shinon.

Nobody else really talked, because dessert arrived and, obviously, they were all occupied for the rest of the meal. Soren was still thinking about his conversation with Dheginsea- and the short conversation with Ashnard as well. _What was he talking to Pelleas about? _Whatever he was planning, it definitely wasn't good. He would have to keep an eye out.

**Ashera's Note: Sorry it took so long. I don't own Lord of the Rings, Glee, the Mad Hatter, the magical cowlick fairy, Dumbledore, Skype, Potter Puppet Pals (TRY TO FIGURE OUT WHERE I REFERENCED THAT), or anything else that I unconsciously referenced to. Or Fire Emblem. Just Kara and various plotlines. Review please! I love you all!**


	12. A Witch?

_**Yune: Hi everyone! So sorry this is late... it took me a while to finish it. I hope you enjoy ^_^**_

_**

* * *

  
**_

Ike awoke to the beautiful sound of wind blowing against his window, making them shake violently. He stretched and sat up, looking around. There was something that was oddly out of place, but he couldn't quite figure it out while currently being half asleep.

An empty bed next to the window, a strange painting of a tree and a flickering lamp, he couldn't really tell which was off.

When he walked towards the bathroom, he suddenly turned quickly and stared at the bed.

"HAH, the Wonderbed is unoccupied!" jumping on it, he scratched his head, "Wait… Micaiah should be in this bed…"

About twenty minutes later, after Ike took a shower and changed into some clean clothes, he studied the room. Micaiah was nowhere to be found, and she had only two ways of getting out.

Ike doubted it was the door, since the night before they had installed a handful of locks. In total, she would have had to undo thirty of them and leave the door unlocked…

There was an intelligent reason why they put the locks on… Ike groaned and looked at every single one of them.

Before he could come to a conclusion, someone knocked.

"Ike let me in, it's Soren."

He opened it, "_SOREN_, MY SAVIOR!"

"…What?" _**Don't tell me something happened already**…_

"I can't find Micaiah."

"How can you lose her in your own room?"

"I don't know, but it's bad. I wake up and find the wonderbed empty."

_**I'm not even going to ask**,_ Soren sighed "Ike, do you have any idea what time it is?"

"No…"

"2 _AM,_ now be good and go back to sleep." Soren began walking to his own room, Ike grabbed his arm.

Eyes shifting suspiciously, "Hey, hey, no one's playing a joke on me right?"

"No, last time I checked..." Soren replied drowsily, Ike nodded.

The sound of footsteps suddenly were heard, in the distance three small flames could be seen. The two boys looked at each other before squinting hard to see who it was.

The Otaku slowly came into view, holding a candle stand.

"_Otaku_?"

"I'd look on your door, you may find something."

Ike closed his door, to find an envelope on the front. It was a white envelope, with a very familiar emblem on it. Yes, the emblem resembled something his sister had once had…

He opened it delicately and stared at the paper found inside blankly.

"What is it?" he showed it to Soren and the Otaku, "It looks like something Witches would use."

"Well black magic is probably involved, so witches, shamans and so on could be in this." The Otaku explained.

Everyone was then gathered in the main living room, either half asleep or completely asleep. No one seemed to understand the situation, and whispered angrily to someone beside them. Tibarn and Neasala spoke quietly in two armchairs, looking as if they were discussing business. Others were sitting on the floor or sprawled along any couch they could possibly find that was still available.

Ike entered last, ordering all the doors locked, barred or glued shut.

"Everyone, Micaiah is missing." He announced and all the students only stared.

Soren nudged him, "Sorry to inform you, but right now you're talking to a bunch of zombies."

There was a long silence, Ike glared at them.

Somewhere in the back, Boyd could be spotted drooling while sleep-standing.

"**MICAIAH HAS GONE MISSING**!" he shouted, surprising the crowd.

Then began the uproar of random shouts, one said that they had seen her a few minutes ago ( Though they were most likely thinking about dinner), another said she was abducted by aliens, Oscar suggested that she was out for a walk and finally the conclusion was that she had been murdered by a witch. That option was most probable, since she would definitely not go out during the evening and Ike would have heard from her if she was abducted by aliens.

Elincia shivered, "Does that mean we'll find her corpse in a closet?"

Ranulf came next, "Or will we find her in an abandoned basement where we need a key that can't be found but eventually find it to get in, kind of thing?" someone looked at him strangely before turning their gaze to something else.

Tibarn stood up, "Where's the proof of her being killed by one?" Ike showed him the paper, immediately he sat down "Alright, that's proof enough for me."

Kara and Faith walked up to Ike, Faith smiling said "We're going to go look for the teachers and Ashera. Don't let anyone in unless you know it's us, okay?"

Kara, with a serious expression, said "The storm is getting really bad guys, lets hope it's not a typhoon or something…" the two left through one of the doors that had been locked.

Thus the waiting began…

The clocks echoed loudly in the room, though there were about twelve different kinds of clocks all set at different times. The students of Guidance Tower, after every minute, became increasingly suspicious of any moving thing. For the first time in years, they found themselves scared.

Sure, being chased around and mauled by a bunch of bears, getting stuck in the wilderness or surrounded by a bunch of angry pirates was scary… but those were things they knew couldn't hurt them. Aside from the random attacks of the Kappa's, they didn't really know for sure about them… Even if she was serious, cold and unkind on the surface; Ashera was one of the most caring people in Tellius. If her students were in danger, she helped in any way possible.

Either way, each student wasn't sure about the coming events.

Ranulf went to sit next to Ike, who had been staring at the emblem.

"Ike, what happens if we… end up like Micaiah?"

"Well, we can't really do much can we?" Ike replied.

"We'll be able to find out how she got out of the room." Ranulf pointed out.

Ike shrugged; he found Pelleas sleeping soundly by the door "Hey, how long has he been there?"

Ranulf didn't reply and stared at the windows in shock "Ike… I think we should find a way to block the windows…"

Outside, a hurricane/typhoon began brewing. All the students began running around like a bunch of fools. Now, there was no telling what could happen.

Eventually there was a loud knock on the door, everyone froze in their actions and stared. They weren't exactly sure which door it came from, and there were at least four people near every single one. Suddenly, there was another knock coming from a different door.

Ike shook his headwhen someone turned to ask if they could open the door. There was no possibility of taking chances in this situation. Therefore, their only choice was to stay quiet and wait for help to arrive.

The knock came one more time, Elincia shifted nervously. Pelleas was now awake, wondering where he was.

After five minutes, there was another knock. Mia and Heather stared at each other in horror, as did everyone else.

Ike walked to the door, unlocked it and peeked through a small crack.

"There's no one there…" he said, sighing in relief.

Suddenly from the corner of the room, a trap door flew open. Ike remembered hearing from the lion king that a tunnel was built under most of Gallia, just in case of great peril. Though he and Micaiah had often played hide and seek in them…

Sephiran, Zelgius, the lion king, along with Ashera came out.

"Ike, why didn't you answer us when we knocked?" Sephiran asked, flattening his now messy hair.

"How was I supposed to know it was you? You knocked about fifty times, you could have said something."

The three gave each other strange glances before looking at the boy; Zelgius cleared his throat "We only knocked once."

Elincia turned white, more than a little freaked out.

Ashera was cleaning herself off, wiping the dust off of her skirt. Her long orangey hair was still perfectly straight, absolutely no sign of her taking an underground trip through a dark and creepy tunnel.

Soren came up to the four adults, "Faith and Kara went looking for you… did they perhaps stay behind in another room?"

For the first time, Ashera's expression faltered "When did they leave?"

"Four and a half hours ago." Soren replied.

Sephiran shook his head, "We never saw them."

There was a long silence; Ashera stared at a wall angrily.

"Miss Ashera, if I may ask…" Kurthnaga stepped forward, Ashera nodded for him to continue "Do you have the _slightest_ idea what we may be up against?"

There was no reply, the students all whispered to each other.

Sephiran crossed his arms and tilted his head in thought, then turned to Ashera "Zelgius and I will go look for them."

"I'm going too." Ike said, walking towards him.

Ashera shook her head, "No, you will all stay here."

"I _have_ to go find Micaiah, I'm not going to sit around like a good little boy and twirl my thumbs. Micaiah and I have known each other for years; we went through more than anyone could possibly know… We hate each other, and I admit sometimes I want to throw her off a cliff, but we wouldn't abandon one another in a dangerous situation. You, Sephiran and Zelgius should know better than anyone who we are." Soren stared at Ike dumbfounded.

A group gathered around Ike, supporting his small speech. Among the group he could spot; Soren, Tibarn, Reyson, Kurthnaga, Sothe, Elincia, Boyd, and many others. They all shouted that they would help in the search, and wouldn't take no for an answer.

And so they marched off into the halls with Sephiran and Zelgius, leaving Ashera and some of the students behind.

As Ike walked, Soren whispered quietly to him, "When did you come up with that speech?"

"I made it up on the spot." He replied proudly.

"Ike, how much of it was true?" Soren asked, looking at his friend in the darkness.

"Hmm, the part when I said that I needed to find her." Ike walked faster, disappearing into the crown in front.

Soren stopped walking, _that couldn't have been something he made up, just like that. He had to have meant it all, it sounded too sincere to be fake… He must be really worried…_

Suddenly a hand grabbed his shoulder, Soren turned quickly.

"Wha…"

The storm had finally died down, now it was only a small thunder storm that covered the skies in black clouds. The wind was quiet, and the windows didn't shake. Everyone found it to be a much calmer situation.

After walking down the longest hallway, Tibarn stopped everyone.

"Is everyone here? We should check, just to be sure."

Sephiran counted once, then twice and stared at the group confusedly.

"We had one more person, right?"

Ike searched for Soren, when he didn't find him he shouted "Soren is missing!"

A door opened slowly before them, a black figure walking out. It walked a few steps before parking itself ten feet away from Zelgius, who prepared himself for the worse.

Sephiran stepped around his friend, "Dheginsea, is that you?"

"Yes, don't be alarmed. I was merely looking around when I found these two." Kara and Faith stepped out from behind him.

Ike stared at the professor with a horrified expression, _oh my gawwd, it's him. What do I do? Do I say that Soren went missing? No that'll only make things worse… what happens if someone else says something, then it won't be my problem right? Soren must've gone to the washroom or something, no what if he was killed by the witch? Do witches even exist? It could have just been a Kappa or something, but they're not supposed to exist either…_

The cold-eyed man looked in Ike's direction, Ike smiled back. Meanwhile, his mental state was decreasing by the second. Micaiah and then Soren, who next?

Elincia gasped, "Reyson went missing!"

"**WHAT**?" Ike screamed, pulling his hair. _Someone must really hate me; does someone have a grudge against me? It has to be Dheginsea, there isn't anyone else…_

He eyed the professor suspiciously, Dheginsea walked towards Ike.

_Snap, snap, snap, what do I do when he's walking in my direction?_

"I'msosorryIdidn'tknow...'tthinkwe'dlosehimthateasily...."

The man's eyebrow twitched a bit, Ike stepped backwards.

"I found this in another room; it is in your name."

He handed Ike another envelope, though he had to force the boy's hand to grip it.

Ike opened it and read;

_Hello Ike,_

_Micaiah is missing, as you probably already noticed. It was rather difficult to get her out I admit; those locks were a good preparation. Here is a piece of advice my young lad, don't come after the girl. If you oppose me, I swear you'll suffer and so will Micaiah. _

_Have a nice day,_

_I don't need to sign this; you already have a hunch on who I am. _

"It couldn't be… _Ashnard_?" he gasped, "Find Pelleas this minute!"

The group ran towards the main room, Dheginsea cleared his throat.

"What did you say about Soren?"

_Of course you wouldn't forget something like that, old man…_

"What is that person doing here?" Soren growled from behind Ike.

"SOREN **_YOU'RE ALIVE_**!"

Soren, Reyson and the Otaku stood there.

"We didn't die; we just went to check the basement. I asked Soren to accompany me there to examine something; Reyson heard us and came down the stairs." The Otaku said, before handing Ike an old staff. "It is a warping staff, used to move objects and people from one area to another. This is the latest model, crafted by the people of Daien."

Sephiran was looking from the corner of his eye, "As to why you know so much, we'll discuss that later." The Otaku nodded, "Though, we should probably ask the prince for further details concerning Micaiah's location."

Everyone made their way back, Ike stayed there quietly. Sephiran placed a hand on the boy's shoulder, Zelgius was standing beside him.

"I know you're worried, but we'll find her. For now stay with Soren and Kara." Sephiran whispered kindly, and then continued to the main room.

Zelgius watched Ike for a moment "Is there something else on your mind?"

Ike shook his head and walked away, leaving the gym teacher alone.

Pelleas didn't say a word, even after a whole day. No one could get the boy to say a word, even if Sephiran asked. Ashera was running out of patience, her face getting angrier by the second.

By evening, he looked up at the person in front of him and opened his mouth.

"Micaiah is in…"

* * *

Micaiah opened her eyes, trying to adjust to the darkness of the room. She rubbed the back of her head, wincing in pain when she touched a sensitive spot. It took quite a long time before she sat up, when she did, she asked herself;

"Where…" looking around, "am I?"

At the present moment, she was sitting on a bed but in a room she had never seen before.

The last thing she remembered was being in her own bed back in Gallia.

The door opened, a man with blue hair walked in.

Not being able to see exactly who it was, she smiled.

"Ike, thank the goddess, I thought that I was…" finally she made out a man, though he did not resemble Ike in any way, "Are you…?"

The man grinned evilly.

* * *

_**Yune: I hope you liked it! Please don't forget to review, we love reviews so very much :3**_


	13. Dinosaurs and Magical Singing Power

**Ashera's Note: Wow, thank you so much everyone. 50 reviews! I'm super sorry for the wait you guys had to go through, I love you all. I tried to make this chapter as enjoyable as possible, but keep in mind that there are a few more serious moments. Thanks again! **

Thoroughly spooked, Micaiah was led from the room. The man was smiling creepily from behind her, but Micaiah took no notice.

"Not that I don't enjoy the air of mystique and whatnot, but where am I?" she asked, sniffing the air as though the scent would give it away.

"Daien, of course," he said, sure she'd have a major BSOD moment when she figured out who he was.

… Except that isn't exactly how it went.

"Sweet! I've missed it here. Thanks!" she exclaimed, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

The man- Ashnard- blinked. "Excuse me?"

"I hate it when you open your fridge and a bear punches you."

The awesomeness of this statement deserve a moment of reflection… okay, that's enough, on with the story.

Ashnard looked royally perturbed. "Yes, don't we all," he replied slowly, as they arrived at a door._ "_Now, I have someone I'd like to introduce you to."

The door swung open to reveal the Black Knight.

Micaiah looked up at him. "Woah, you're even taller than Zelgius," she said, in obvious awe.

The Black Knight looked at Ashnard from over her head. "My lord?"

"Take this girl," said the king. "She-"

"Hey!" the girl in question exclaimed suddenly. "I remember you!" The Black Knight looked down at her for a second (or at least, we think he did. We can't really see his face, so he might have just tilted his head to pose for the hidden cameras). After a moment, he lifted his head.

"You were saying?" he prompted Ashnard.

"Oh, no you don't," Micaiah cut in, glaring. "Don't you ignore me. You're the one- from that battlefield."

"Battlefield?" Ashnard asked, befuddled. "What's this?"

"It was you. You killed Ike's father!"

The knight tilted his head. "Are you referring to Gawain?"

Micaiah didn't listen. She was trapped in the past.

"I can remember it so clearly," she said in a slow, trance-like voice." It was the day I met Ike. I… I was standing on the field." She rubbed her arms, as though she could still feel the wind chilling her bare skin. "Sephiran was holding my hand. I can still see all of the blood, hear the screams… All of a sudden, he swore and ran off. I looked around, confused… there was a little boy on the field. I ran over to him and asked him what he was doing there. he told me his family was fighting. I said the same thing. Suddenly, some wyvern knights flew toward us. He grabbed my hand, and we both started running away. We were running in the forest, and all of a sudden we stopped. I thought we were lost, but I was wrong. There was a tall man wielding an axe- it was Greil, Ike's father- and then there was another man, dressed head to toe in black. The boy ran forward, but his father yelled, "Ike! Stay back!" He moved backwards. He and the knight talked to eachother; the knight threw him a sword, but Greil didn't take it. And then… all of a sudden… the knight had killed him. Ike screamed and ran to his body; I followed, having nowhere else to go. The knight turned toward us and sheathed his sword, and he said "I will not harm children." And then he just left. Sephiran found us a few minutes later, and brought us back, but… it was all a blur. We were too shocked."

The Black Knight didn't move. "…Yes, that was me."

"But that's history," Ashnard announced, striding into the field of tension. "Black Knight, take Micaiah here to the training ground. I want to see what she can do."

"Yes, my lord."

Ike was pissed off. He had a big honking sword pointed at a blue-haired boy's throat. No one was really sure where he'd been keeping it all this time, but it just happened to materialize in his hand at a convenient moment.

"I don't know what you're talking about!" yelped Pelleas.

"Please, Pelleas. You're a terrible liar; and besides that, I can smell Micaiah on you. Tell me where she is."

"Ike-"

"Now." He put a little more pressure on the sword, so that Pelleas could feel the cold metal against his warm, bare flesh.

"She's in Castle Daien, in Nevassa!" he exclaimed. Ike pulled away his blade.

"I knew you'd come around." He started to leave, but turned his head at the last moment. "Lock him up."

Soren walked up beside him. "Ike?" he said, slightly unsettled.

"Soren?" the taller boy replied, barely looking down.

"Ike," Soren said." You're not yourself."

"You're right. And I won't be myself until Micaiah's here."

"Ike-" Ike spun around.

"No!" he exclaimed. "Don't you get it? This is my worst nightmare! I've known Micaiah for years, Soren. I met her on a battlefield. I met her the day my father died. I didn't even know her name- we just ran through the forest, trying to escape the fighting, only to come across my father. I didn't even get to say goodbye. He died right away. On that day, Micaiah and I swore that we'd stay together, no matter what. I had nightmares for months that the knight who killed my father came back for her. And now Ashnard has her. I have to find her."

Soren was quiet for a moment. Ike turned around and barely heard his best friend say, in a small voice, "I know you will, Ike."

This sweet little best friend moment was interrupted my one Sephiran walking in.

"Any news?" the vice-principal asked.

"She's in Castle Daien. In Nevassa," Ike replied, not turning his head.

"Sir, where's Zelgius?" asked Soren, having noticed his disappearance.

Sephiran suddenly appeared very interested in his fingernails. "He's, er, busy saving Micaiah."

"But we just found out where she is!" Ike whined. Er, complained.

"He's, ah, already left," Sephiran improvised.

Soren started pacing melodramatically. "Sir, when are _we_ leaving?"

Sephiran was a little taken aback. "We?"

"Soren, you don't have to come," Ike put in.

Soren sighed. "Ike, you're my best friend. And besides, I don't trust you not to do something stupid- and I bet there are a few other people who want to find Micaiah as well. She's rather popular."

"In that case," Sephiran said, glancing at his watch, "we'll leave right now."

"Micaiah." Micaiah totally ignored the Black Knight. "Micaiah."

"Gimme a sec."

"Micaiah, I have to tell you-"

"Seriously, knight!" she exclaimed. "I'm stretching."

"You don't need to stretch to use magic," he said in a slow voice.

"_Au contraire_, knighty-doodle," Micaiah corrected in a very matter-of-fact voice, "I do. And you're going to help me. Now, we'll start with the neck."

"The neck?" the knight asked, looking as though he wasn't sure whether he wanted to know.

… Okay, that's a lie. We have no idea what he looked like, because he wears a freakin' helmet. But we _imagine_ he looked like that.

"Shhh!" Micaiah exclaimed in a whisper. "Now, let's begin." She planted her feet shoulder width apart, and very deliberately started turning to head from side to side, and up and down, and such.

"Aaaaaand… To the side, to the center. To the side, to the center. Up, to the center. Down, to the center. Tilt, to the center. Tilt, to the center. Repeat!"

The Black Knight tried to interrupt. "Micaiah, I-"

"Shut up!" the silverette exclaimed. "I'm on a roll! To the side! To the center! To the side! To the center! To the- Ike?"

A second later, the bluet walked in.

"Ike!" she shouted, running up to hug the boy.

"Micaiah…" said the Black Knight.

"Knight!" Ike declared, finishing the name triangle.

Suddenly a dinosaur appeared. "Eye of rabbit, harpstring hum, turn this water into rum!"

Micaiah turned to Ike. What's Billybob doing here?" For indeed, this particular dinosaur was named Billybob. He used to live in the closet.

"Sorry, folks," the reptile said cheerfully. "I have to relieve myself."

Sephiran walked in, not at all put off that there was a dinosaur in the room. After all, it was a vegetarian dinosaur. Just like vegetarian vampires, they aren't dangerous. "Charming," he said.

"Did you know that seventy percent of the Earth's surface is made up of water?" asked Billybob.

"Did you know that your voice is really annoying?" Micaiah asked politely.

"What's wrong?" the dinosaur asked. If he had ears, they would have drooped.

"Your face," said Ike. The dinosaur's non-existent ears drooped more, and he sauntered off through a really big door labeled 'Camelot'.

Nobody gave the thing a second thought.

"Ike? Sephiran?" Micaiah asked. "Why are you here?"

"Micaiah, stay behind me!" Ike growled.

"What?" she asked.

"Do you know who this man is?" he hissed.

"Yes-_" _she started to speak, but was cut off by Ike charging the Black Knight, sword in hand.

Ike!" Soren yelled, grabbing his best friend's arms. "Ike, remember what we talked about? Think before you act! Use your brain for once in your life!"

The Black Knight and Sephiran paid no attention to the teenagers.

"Sir-"

"Go, Knight," Sephiran said calmly. "Tell Ashnard-"

"Tell me what?"

Everyone looked to the doorway, where King Ashnard stood.

"Your Majesty!" Zel- er, the knight exclaimed.

Sephiran clapped his hands together. "Ah, wonderful. I can tell you the message in person."

"What is this message?" asked the king.

"Overreaching ambition invites disaster," Sephiran dictated zen-ly. Yes, Sephiran was zen. Very, very zen. He would have to offer Ike lessons upon their safe return.

"Pah, nonsense," Ashnard said. "How did you know to come here?"

"Your wonderful son was too scared of my blade," spat Ike.

"Ah, well, it's to be expected," said Ashnard, totally not caring that his son was a fail. "Now, since you're here, I'm afraid I'll simply have to take my plans to the next level. Micaiah. If you would come here."

"Soren, let go of me!" Ike said. Soren froze, and Ashnard's head snapped toward the small boy cowering behind the dunderhead in front of him.

"Soren?" he asked carefully.

Soren would have whimpered, but he was too badass to. "Ike…" he muttered.

"Ashnard!" Ike declared, yet again finishing the name triangle game. He was really good at that.

"Not again," sighed Sephiran. Never mind that he wasn't there the first time. "What's with everyone yelling each other's name?"

Don't try to distract me, Prime Minister," ordered Ashnard. "Who is the boy?"

Then the Otaku walked into the room and asked the most important question of all.

"Who're you?"

Ashnard blinked with dignity. "I beg your pardon?"

"You don't look like a witch to me," the Otaku mused. "Or a shaman."

"Of course I don't!" he sputtered indignantly. Or incredulously. Both work. "I'm King Ashnard!"

"Huh…" the Otaku said thoughtfully (because we might as well add in another adverb). I don't recognize that name…"

Ashnard still looked constipated. "I-"

"-know a song that gets on everybody's nerves!" Everybody stared at Micaiah, who'd suddenly started singing.

Luckily, the Black Knight saw fit to voice everyone's thoughts.

"Huh?"

"Come on, Ike," Micaiah muttered anxiously. "We need a diversion!"

"No!" Ike proclaimed. "I need vengeance!"

"Soren!" Ashnard exclaimed, having just gotten over the shock of not being recognized.

"Ike!" Soren shouted.

"Otaku!"

The world stopped spinning for a moment.

"…Ike," Micaiah said gently, "it doesn't work like that."

"Otaku!" yelled Ike, who hadn't even noticed the name triangle game fail.

"Yes?" The Otaku said.

"Can you tell me some more about those warp staffs?" he said.

Somewhere, in the great far off distance, somebody sneezed.

"Okay," said the Otaku.

"What is going on?" asked Micaiah.

"You were killed by a witch," Soren deigned to inform her.

"Wicked!" she exclaimed, her face lighting up.

"Yes, a wicked one," Soren agreed solemnly.

"And there was a picture of Sephiran's medallion on it," the Otaku informed her.

Sephiran went into Blue Screen of Death mode.

The Otaku frowned a frown that could just barely be made out behind the Otaku's cape. "Oh, are you still going by Lehran?"

All of a sudden, Ike started bending his knees. "Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain," he sang.

Micaiah punched her teacher. "Sephiran!" he squeaked.

"Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain," Ike continued, which was followed by a grumbled "Sephiran".

Ashnard was bitten by the musical bug as well. "King, King, King Ashnard!"

Meanwhile, "Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain" and "Sephiran!" were still going on.

Pause. "Micaiah." Pause. "Micaiah." Pause. "Micaiah. Micaiah, Micaiah."

"Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain. Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain", "Sephiran!" and "King, King, King Ashnard!" were heard.

Everybody stared at Soren.

"Sorendaien" he said quickly, to make sure no one heard his last name. "Sorendaien."

"Ike!"

"Soren"

"Ike!"

"Soren!"

"Ike!"

"Soren"

"Ike!"

"Soren!"

"Ike!"

"Soren!"

"Ike!"

"SEPHIRAN!" No, Sephiran was not really into it. He just stubbed his toe. Yes, that's it. His toe.

"Miiiiiicaiah," the silverette put in.

"Ike."

"Sorendaien, I'm Sorendaien."

"King, King, King Ashnard."

"Micaiah."

"Ike, Ike, Ike Gawain."

"Sephiran!"

"Singing our song, all day long in DAAAAAAAAIENNNNNNN!"

"I found the source of the singing!" Ike exclaimed. "It's magical singing powder!"

"YAAAAA-" _Crash_.

The Black Knight had just kicked the wall.

"DO IT DO IT DO IT!" Everyone chorused.

"Zelgius, Zelgius, ooh, Zelly Zelly Zelly Zelgius," he muttered. Everyone was cheering so loudly that nobody heard what he said, only that he said it.

Suddenly the world stopped being pink.

And everyone regained their senses.

Ashnard included. The man inched closer to Soren.

"What did you say your last name was?"

**Brownie points to whomever can correctly name BOTH Potter Puppet Pals references (not just the super obvious one). I'm so sorry for how long this took. Please tell us what you think of the current story arc! I don't own PPP or Fire Emblem. Lots of love from the both of us. Thank you for being so patient! Please review, it's like chocolate to me.  
**


	14. There's an exit sign!

_**Yune's Note: I am so super duper ultra sorry for being late DX I keep getting interrupted to do things and I haven't been able to upload this! WELL, here it is and I hope you enjoy! Thank you for all the great reviews! **_

_**I don't own Fire Emblem, (sadly)...**_

* * *

Ashnard repeated the question, "What did you say your last name was?"

Soren froze for a second and carefully thought out an answer that could convince the king.

Ashnard asked again but this time more desperate, a pencil snapped somewhere in the distance.

Soren's expression was more than a little annoyed, "Before you open your mouth again and ask me that question, may I please _think_? Unlike many people, I usually think my answers through."

Ashnard ordered for a chair, it was immediately brought out and placed behind him. He sat down slowly and finally slouched forward, placing his left hand under his chin.

"I'm not a very patient person-"

"Fool!" Ike interjected.

The king ignored Ike, "Just try t-"

"Fool!"

"Who are you calling a-"

"Fool!"

Sephiran stared for quite some time and listened as the two bickered back and forth, though he noticed it was buying Soren some time. Even if the diversions were completely, er…strange, Ike was doing it for his best friend.

Someone sighed; Sephiran was convinced it was coming from his side. He glanced sideways to find the Otaku kneeling and playing with a small pebble.

"You know much more than I originally thought and it was very surprising to find someone that … I'm rather curious… just who are you?" he asked looking ahead.

"Elvis." Came the reply.

"I se-Excuse me?" he turned with a confused expression.

The Otaku pointed towards the king and Ike "They stopped." Soren was opening his mouth.

Ashnard smiled, "Ah so you have an answer?"

"Yes and I'm only saying it once, but if I give it to you will you let us go?" Soren asked and crossed his arms.

"Of course not! Who would I be if I let my prisoners out so easily? Isn't it an evil villain's policy to keep his prisoners and torture them? Of course it isn't my intention to hurt any of you unless you do something completely stupid! Sadly it isn't in my nature to let any of you out because it would only mean letting the hero and the damsel in distress out, eventually the two would come back with an army and kill me blah, blah, blah… Like any other evil king out there, I strictly try to follow the 'Evil Overlord' list." He stopped, Micaiah interrupted before Soren could say something.

"That is so cool, I love that list!" she stopped for a second before realizing something, "_HEY,_ who're you calling 'Damsel in distress' buddy? Ike's the damsel and I'm the hero!"

"You are the one who got herself caught and now your little friends including the hero have come to save you." Ashnard spoke while waving his hand in the air, which annoyed Micaiah as she glared at him.

"I could have escaped from this garbage dump myself! I don't need Ike coming to my rescue, it's not like I'm completely useless!" she stomped off in another direction.

"Soren Daein." Soren mumbled.

"DAEIN?" Ashnard screamed.

Ike made his way towards the Black Knight, who didn't notice Ike until there was a large sword in front of him. The Black Knight stepped back a bit, the armor appearing to be incredibly heavy.

"Ike, I don't want to fight you." The voice spoke behind the helmet.

"Don't mess around Knight, you killed my father! Once you're dead my life will be so much better. I'll know that the man who murdered so many is lying in a grave." He spat and Micaiah grabbed his arm tightly.

"Ike we don't have time to do this, we have to get out of here!" she said and tried dragging him back.

The Black Knight stood like a statue, "There's a way out by the back, I'll distract the king." There was no hint of emotion in the voice.

"No way I'm trusting you Knight! For all I know you could be leading us to our deaths!" Ike spoke harshly.

The Otaku stepped between him and the knight, "You know I'm a real big fan of fights and stuff… but personally I'd rather get out of here and trust a guy who might be leading us out the right way. Wasn't the original idea to save Micaiah and get out?"

Micaiah suddenly realized that, "Hey I feel really forgotten! But I'm still not the damsel in distress that needs saving!"

Ike sighed and leaned forward, "I'm sorry…I just can't…Micaiah, I'm sorry…"

Smiling, she placed a hand on his back "Don't worry about it. I think we should listen to the knight and leave while we can. Aside from all that… I'm not sure how much longer Soren can handle the situation over there." She pointed to where he was.

Soren and Ashnard were yelling over each other's voices, something about what happened to him when he was born. Everyone couldn't understand what Ashnard and Soren were saying but deep in their minds they didn't want to know. …But err I mean, who doesn't want to listen to their conversation?

"Who's your mother?" Ashnard asked, leaning forward in his chair while gripping the arms roughly.

"What?" Soren had a strange expression on his face, so strange it was hardly describable.

"Your grandfather then?" Ashnard continued without stopping.

"Dheginsia… oh sorry, KING Dheginsia." Soren replied quickly.

"Of Goldoa?" Ashnard raised an eyebrow.

"He's also my history teacher at school."

"Aaah I see now…" the king nodded as if he understood something, "So who is your mother?"

Soren stared around for a second, he wasn't sure if the king was stupid or if he just wasn't listening. In his moment of thought, he concluded that it was probably much better if the king didn't know anything about it…

Sephiran kneeled next to Ike, "We should get going now Ike. Go get Soren and the Knight will take care of the king for us. I do believe Ashera is waiting for us and I'm not sure how long she'll last before walking over here herself." He placed a hand on Ike's shoulder, shaking the boy a little.

Micaiah frowned and looked at Sephiran "Why didn't she come in the first place?"

The religion teacher hesitated for a few seconds "She has-well, a very bad temper when it comes to her own students. Yune is ten times worse but that's another story. Ashera would most likely tear the very earth to find her students."

Ike leaned forward slowly, trying to calm himself. Sephiran remained with a hand on the boy's back and talked to him.

The silverette nodded and walked towards the Black Knight.

"You remind me of someone I know… he's really cool and muscled like you and he's a gym teacher. Of course there's always been this really mysterious aura about him that I've tried to figure out… His name is Zelgius; I've known him since I was really small. He, Sephiran, Ike and me have spent a lot of time together." She laughed, "Don't really know why I'm telling you this… but I really do want to forgive you for what you've done to Ike and me in the past. I have one side of me that really hates you but there's another side that wants to like you." Micaiah stopped to write something in her journal, something along the lines that whatever she was saying was really cheesy.

The Knight didn't reply at first and wasn't sure what to say.

"Well… I'm glad to hear all of that…" Micaiah, surprised, looked up and smiled.

"You really might not be that bad a person, you know…" she turned to where Ike was with Sephiran, he looked up and she turned back to the Knight "Which way's out?"

The armored figure raised an arm and pointed to the sidewall, "If you follow the side path you'll see an exit."

Ike, Sephiran, Micaiah, the Otaku and Soren ran towards the path that had been revealed. Ashnard was ranting on about something until he noticed the group running. As he pulled a rather huge sword out of nowhere and began to pursue, the Knight stepped in and the king stopped.

As Micaiah was about to turn the corner, she saw the king and the knight fight. Their swords clashed fiercely, creating a very loud resonating sound that hurt Micaiah's ears. The pieces of metal shone brilliantly in the strong sunlight and the silverette was very impressed by them. Ike had a big sword like theirs but she was hardly ever near Ike when he practiced with it. As the swords met again, she noticed the knight was struggling against the king's attacks.

Suddenly, the knight's sword flew to the side. Micaiah gasped and was about to go help but Sephiran caught her arm roughly.

"He'll be fine." He said softly as she struggled to go back.

As they made their way through what appeared to be a maze, they spotted signs with various designs on them along the way. Ike stopped to stare at one that had a 'Do not enter' message on it, turned and looked at the rest of the group.

"What's this supposed to mean?"

The Otaku answered, "A do not enter sign apparently."

"Thanks, that's obvious enough."

They continued for some time before arriving at the last sign that read in bold lettering, "THIS IS THE EXIT! HOPE YOU HAD A NICE STAY, NEXT TIME WE MAY ACTUALLY KILL YOU! HAHAHA"

"Seriously?" Sephiran's eyes narrowed.

"So are we walking back to Gallia? After all of that, I think I might seriously fall over and drag myself there." Ike crouched as the group walked ahead.

Soren was in too much of a bad mood, angrily he grabbed Ike by the collar and began walking while dragging him, "Don't worry, I may do it the whole way."

Micaiah sighed, "If only you guys were thoughtful enough to ride bikes here or something… oh wait, horses would have been way cooler."

Ike glared at her, "Just so you know Altina, we didn't really think of convenience. Our main goal was to rescue your huge butt." Soren was still pulling Ike along.

"Well excuse me! I was having a nice time until you guys showed up!" she snapped back, turning her head away.

Sephiran slouched forward; his zen-ness was beginning to fade along with his patience. He really just wanted to sit down and have a nice cup of tea or coffee, but by the time he got back to Gallia he would probably want something way stronger than caffeine. This had been a little too stressful and left him extremely tired and annoyed.

Soren suddenly dropped Ike and walked on his own, mumbling to himself about how he wasn't looking forward to going home. The raven-haired boy had an indescribable expression on his face, so you'll have to imagine it yourselves.

"Was I supposed to ignore the situation and leave you there?" Ike asked as he got up.

Micaiah tilted her head in thought, "Yeah probably."

The Otaku pointed ahead in the far distance, "Something's coming."

Ike and Micaiah leaned forward and squinted, and in unison said, "I don't see anything!"

A few moments later, green figures on motorcycles stopped before them. All of them had black leather jackets and huge sunglasses.

Sephiran stared in bewilderment; his left eye twitched "Is… is that…?"

Soren turned, "It couldn't be…"

Ike's eyes were wide, no smile on his face, "No way…"

Micaiah was confused, "Is… are those Kappas?"

Soren face-palmed himself, "Oh dear Goddess…"

Yes they were Kappas, on motorcycles.

Sephiran stared around for a baseball bat but sadly there wasn't one. He stared at the lead Kappa, "Where are you heading?"

The Kappa chuckled, "Gallia my friends."

Micaiah smiled, "We're going there too!"

"Need a lift? We can get you there faster." One of the Kappas said.

"Sure, it'll save me from dragging myself." Ike was about to get on one of the motorcycles.

"Ike, what are you doing?" Sephiran asked, grabbing his arm.

"He said he could get us there faster!"

Micaiah grabbed him by the shoulders and shook him, "KAPPAS AREN'T SUPPOSED TO SAY ANYTHING!"

The Otaku bowed politely to the leader Kappa, "Thank you for your kindness, we'll only need a lift about halfway there."

"Sure thing, little…err, lady, man?" He wasn't sure what to say.

So they all got on separate bikes, each sitting behind a Kappa. Micaiah was cheerfully sitting behind the leading kappa, asking all sorts of questions. Ike was on the bike near Sephiran, who appeared to be taking the ride badly.

"Hey are you okay sir?" Ike asked concerned.

"I'll be fine."

"Did the Otaku say why we're going halfway?" Ike asked curiously.

Realizing he didn't ask, Sephiran stared around for the Otaku, "Where did…"

The Otaku was in the far back, conversing with another Kappa.

"Snap." Said Sephiran.

"Snapper? Isn't that a fish?" Micaiah asked from the front.

"Snooper?" Ike asked, cupping his ear in attempt to hear something.

"Never mind!" screamed Sephiran, the other two continued yelling at each other.

Soren meanwhile, was still mumbling to himself angrily.

The journey was long; it took a good four hours before they stopped to be let off.

Ike and Micaiah waved with white handkerchiefs as the Kappas rode away.

"So, any reason why we're going through a really dark and gloomy forest?" Ike asked as they were walking through thick bushes.

The Otaku picked up a staff on the ground, "We can just teleport back but I needed to get this first."

Remembering, Ike asked about the staff, "Where and how did you get that thing?"

"Oh, I've had it for a while now. This model is a lot older than the ones you see today but it still works just as well." The Otaku replied casually.

"Seriously?"

"Seriously." The Otaku affirmed.

Micaiah was fidgeting with her thumbs, "So it's going to teleport us back to Gallia?"

"I hope so." The Otaku replied.

_I am getting way too old for all of this… _Sephiran cringed.

"So there's a chance we might end up back in Daein?" Micaiah asked.

"It's quite possible, though I doubt it."

A good fifteen minutes later, they found themselves in Gallia. The large mansion-like building they had been staying in was there. Ike and Micaiah suddenly collapsed on the grass, instantly asleep. Soren glared at them, his eyes red and puffy.

The front door suddenly flew open, though it actually fell off the hinges and on to the front steps.

Out stepped none other than the one and only Ashera. She didn't appear to be mad but she didn't appear to be very happy either… Sephiran wasn't sure what she was feeling. Students came out various ways, either the door or by the windows. (Remember, window jumping is one of the many skills the students of Guidance Tower learn.)

Ashera stared around for the two, frowned and then noticed them on the ground.

"What happened to those two?" she asked, kneeling next to them both.

"I think they're exhausted…" Sephiran smiled faintly.

Ashera nodded her head and then patted the two on their heads, "Make sure they get rest."

Tibarn, Reyson and Ranulf came towards the group.

Tibarn chuckled, "Judging by those two, they'll be up tomorrow morning causing trouble for everyone."

"Most likely… well, we should all take it easy today." Ashera said shifting her gaze to the side.

As Ike dreamt many things, he thought of only one thing.

_Where did Zelgius go…? Didn't he go save Micaiah…?_

When the two next opened their eyes, each was lying in their respective beds. The birds were chirping loudly and the sun shone brilliantly through the windows. Unknown to them, they had only been asleep for twenty-five minutes exactly.

Micaiah and Ike turned on their sides, only to discover their gym teacher meditating in between their beds.

"Zelgius!" Micaiah sat up quickly and then feeling dizzy, lay back down.

"Where did you go? Sephiran said you had gone to save Micaiah but you weren't there at all!" Ike glared at his gym teacher.

Opening his eyes, Zelgius stared calmly at Ike, "Foolish boy, I went in spirit. I stayed here to protect the students."

Utterly confused Ike stared at Zelgius suspiciously, "…But Sephiran sai-"

Suddenly the door burst open and in came a familiar green haired maiden.

"Ike, oh thank the goddess you're all right!" the girl hugged him tightly.

"Elincia?"

"I was so worried while you were gone… everyone was, really…" Elincia went over to Micaiah's bed, "I'm glad to see that you're safe Micaiah." She leaned in and hugged Micaiah, who stared over the girl's shoulder.

Ike grinned, Micaiah's eye twitched ever so slightly.

Zelgius left the room when a stampede of students came rushing in; he stood quietly in the hallway. Sephiran walked up to him, his hands clasped together behind his back.

"Do they know?"

"Not quite, but I know they'll find out at some point…" Zelgius sighed.

A smiling Sephiran placed his hand on the man's shoulder, "Eventually, but I think I rather enjoy spending time with those two."

"I suppose." He returned the smile.

"Now, I'm in dire need of something to drink!"

Ike and Micaiah recovered five days later, completely back to their 'normal' habits. They were happily skipping through the halls, staying awake until 3 AM eating only candy and chocolate and somehow managed to enjoy the rest of their vacation.

Of course, the incident in Daein never left their minds.

At some point while walking down to eat lunch, Ike turned to Micaiah, "…Wait, did we seriously get driven home by a bunch of Kappas?"

* * *

**_I'm not really sure where I got the Kappas idea... _**

**_Please review! _**


	15. The War Begins

**Ashera's Note: Sorry it's been so long. This is the longest chapter yet, though!**

**Disclaimer: There are pizza pies on my ceiling. They're invisible ;)**

**Warning: Soren and Ike and a few others have developed some… er… more mature language.**

Guidance Tower Academy had very tight security.

Most people did not know that. How could a school with so much insanity have any rules at all? Well, the insanity was a product of those rules.

The school had alarms. A lot of alarms. More than most schools, in fact. There was the water emergency alarm, which happened when somebody drowned in the lake. See, the Tower had a lake. You may not know about it, because the story so far has taken place in the winter, but during summertime the lake is open for students. In fact, they have a system. Each student has a chip labeled with their names that they put on the Water Bulletin board if they're swimming, so that the lifeguards (a.k.a. the overworked and underpaid teachers) know that they're in the water. They'll take attendance of all the swimmers. Of course, when someone doesn't respond, there's a problem.

And an alarm rings.

It sounds like a fire truck. When it goes off, all of the students have to walk to the Great Hall while the teachers go dive into the lake to search for the missing kid. Every person on campus knows this bell so well their response is automatic. If people are lying in bed (because napping is a common occurrence in the summer) everyone is out of the dorm in a few seconds flat. The students must walk on the left side of the road, because the teachers run on the right. And they run FAST. Fast like Kenyans. In fact, many students have gotten run over by teachers. Sometimes, if a teacher is a slow runner, they'll ride a horse or a bull or even a flying pig.

Then there's the land search bell. If someone goes missing on campus, this bell rings. It's high pitched, then breaks and starts again. It's freakin' terrifying. Last time Pelleas woke up to it he pissed his pants. Then again, that's not saying much. Same procedure as for the water emergency.

Then there's the fire alarm. It's kind of like the water alarm, but on a creepy loop. Recently there was a false alarm started by Ike and Micaiah in History class. Common procedure is to run out of the room waving your hands over your head. Bonus marks for helpless wailing.

And then there's the intruder alarm. When this rings, you have to hide. Look out for this:

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP.

When the Old Geezer puts his car in reverse it often causes a panic.

Now that you've been debriefed, here we go. Note that this is absolutely NOT foreshadowing, oh, no, no, no.

. . .

"IKEE-PIE!"

The high pitched squeal served as Ike's only warning before a petite green

haired figure glomped him.

"Why –pie?" he asked grumpily, sitting up. Elincia grinned sheepishly.

"Welllll, Micaiah always calls you Ikee-poo, and I can't use that nickname because I'm your GIRLFRIEND, and…"

"Elincia, could you please get off?" Elincia looked taken aback.

"Why? Do you hate me? Oh my gosh, what have I done, my Ikee-poo ha-"

"I landed on my twenty-pound backpack. It _hurts_."

Elincia's mouth formed a surprised 'o'. She backed off and Ike struggled to his feet.

"Ike, you seem to be in a bad mood today," she commented. He grimaced.

"I didn't sleep a _wink_ last night."

"Why?"

"Micaiah."

Elincia swung her head around before lowering her voice. "What happened? I heard she and Pelleas broke up…"

"Last night. In the dorm." Elincia gasped.

"Do I even want to know?"

Ike took a deep breath. "Well, for the past few days, she's been avoiding him like the goddamn plague. He's been desperate to talk to her, and bugging her constantly until she finally snapped last night."

Elincia winced. "Oh, dear."

"She screamed bloody murder at him, insulting everything from his hair color to his mother's sexual practices. She then slapped him a few times, and told him to go die in a hole."

"Ouch."

Ike rubbed his temples. "Then she started crying and refused to sleep on the same floor as him, so Soren spent the night in Kara's room playing poker and Micaiah spent the night crying in the corner of my room."

Elincia glared. "You didn't do anything, right?"

"No! I mean, I patted her on the back and called Pelleas a floppy wanded dementor boggerer, but that's it! I swear!"

Elincia's gaze softened. "That's pretty tough, but I mean, who can blame her? He did kidnap her."

Ike pinched the bridge of his nose. "So none of us got any sleep last night- except Sothe, who can sleep through a freakin' hurricane- and now we have a meeting with Sephiran to petition for Pelleas's immediate expulsion."

"That's harsh, too."

Ike's jaw dropped. "Excuse me?"

Elincia shrugged. "Well, think about it. I know for a fact that it's hard to say no when your parents are pressuring you, especially if they're the king and queen. You don't really get a life when your parents rule a country. Between your father and your tutors, and the aristocrats, and the other kings and queens, it sometimes feels like you're just a well everybody uses and nobody pays back. It's easy to stand here and say I would never do anything like that, but I honestly don't know what I'd do if I were in that kind of situation. And beyond that, he just met his father. He probably feels incredibly insecure about his position, especially with a father like _that._"

Elincia took a deep breath. "All that to say that while what he did was not right, it was understandable. He's not a bad person, he's just a weak person."

Ike blinked. "That was… unexpectedly insightful."

Elincia pursed her lips, twirling a strand of hair. Ike started to walk off.

"Hey! Ike!"

Ike turned his head. "Yeah?"

"Can I come with you? You know, moral support?"

Ike shrugged. "Sure." Elincia squealed and ran down to join him, high heels clicking against the floor.

. . .

"LEHRAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"

Ashera was pissed off. Like, not even kidding pissed off. She stormed into the vice principal's office, not bothering to hide her emotions.

Sephiran looked up. "Goddess, what is it?"

"Did you tell the deadly duo they could move into my OFFICE?" Her voice had risen to a shriek.

"No! What- why- oh, no…"

"This morning," started the Headmistress, "I walked into my office only to find Harry Potter playing on my television, popcorn, chocolate and sushi strewn across the room, and two bodies rolling around in SLEEPING BAGS. Oh, no, indeed."

"I'm so sorry."

"_What _did you tell them?"

Sephiran bit his lip. "They came last night about the Pelleas situation, and Micaiah swore up and down that she could not share a dorm with him. Under the circumstances, I told them that if they wanted to temporarily take up residence with somebody else, they could, PROVIDED they had that someone's permission."

"Well, they didn't have it." Ashera paused. "Oh my, those two _are_ sneaky devils."

"How do you mean?"

"They _did_ ask. They asked if I'd always protect them and let them stay here as long as necessary… and they asked in my office…" She grabbed the loudspeaker. "IKE GAWAIN AND MICAIAH ALTINA, GET YOUR SORRY ARSES INTO SEPHIRAN'S OFFICE BEFORE I BLOW UP THE SCHOOL!"

Every other person in the building simultaneously shivered.

. . .

"So Micaiah…"

"Yes, Ike?"

"We should totally eat pie."

"Yes, we totally should."

"Totally!"

"This is totally awesome!"

"Could you totally shut up with the totallys?"

Both turned around to see Elincia bobbing her head, looking annoyed.

"You invite me over here to study and just sit and play video games while I do your homework? How is that fair?"

"We entertain."

"Amuse."

"Enthrall."

"Oh my god, shut up with the synonyms!"

Both grinned like Cheshire cats.

"She has a point," commented Soren. "We're on the brink of war here. This is no time to be fooling around."

Elincia dropped her teacup. Luckily, it landed on a cushion and didn't break.

"What do you mean, the brink of war?"

Soren raised an eyebrow, incredulous.

"Elincia, your own kingdom is at war. You shouldn't be so… startled."

Elincia didn't back off. "But you said 'here'. And as far as I know, only Crimea and Dain are at war. Surely Begnion's not implicated."

"Are you shitting me? By kidnapping Micaiah, Ashnard pretty much declared war on Ashera, and therefore the entire continent!"

"Well, you'd know all about that, being his son."

They all fell silent. Soren's tone was dangerous when he spoke again—like a dagger, cutting across the flesh.

"I don't know how you learned that, Elincia, but if you say a word of it to anyone else I'll do _that man_ a favor and fucking kill you, okay?"

Elincia bit her lip.

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean that, Soren, I know you're not like him. I just wanted to lash out. I'm so confused, and so upset, and… and I'm so damn angry all the time I don't know how to handle it. But I know you're not like him, and I didn't mean it. I'm sorry."

Soren stared at her for a second. "You've changed," he remarked, a casual tone hiding the underlying threat.

She laughed humorlessly. "I had to, didn't I? We all had to." Her face hardened. "But I want to understand. Why was kidnapping Micaiah so… momentous?"

Soren raised his eyebrows. "'Momentous'?" he mocked.

Elincia sighed, frustrated. "Why did Micaiah's kidnapping matter so much? No offense, Micaiah."

"None taken," the girl replied. She and Ike were still playing their video game, but half-heartedly. They were far more interested in what the others were talking about.

"Micaiah's the freakin' apostle, Elincia."

Elincia's brow creased. "I thought that was Sanaki."

"Only for appearances' sake. Micaiah and Sanaki are sisters, but that's classified. You're incredibly lucky to have access to this."

Elincia nodded. "So why is Ashera involved?"

"Well, Micaiah is Sephiran's descendent, and Sephiran is Ashera's right hand man. And that means she'll get involved."

Elincia nodded, not quite understanding why Soren looked like he hadn't slept since they got back from Spring Break.

"But Tellius made a pact hundreds of years ago and swore that the entire continent would never be enveloped in a war."

Elincia's eyes widened a tiny bit.

"If it did, then Ashera would destroy Tellius."

"Don't listen to him, Elincia," Micaiah cut in, interrupting a melodramatic scream from the princess. "In his mind, everything's about war. You're about war. I'm about war."

"This video game's about war," Ike added.

Micaiah raised her eyebrows.

"Ike, this video game _is _about war."

"Oh. Right."

Elincia rolled her eyes, and then cleared her throat. "Micaiah?"

"Yeah?"

"Aren't you a bit worried, too? That it'll turn into war?"

"Oh, I know it will. But Soren's exaggerating."

"I am not," cut in the raven-haired boy.

"Please. The entire continent of Tellius will not go to war over your father being an idiot."

"Can you stop saying 'your father' like that?"

"Soren, you're not the only one with daddy issues here. I'm cut from the same cloth as you." Elincia didn't know that the two were branded, but Soren figured out what Micaiah meant all the same.

"Nevertheless, Micaiah, the continent is going to break into war. Crimea and Daien are all ready fighting. Gallia is ready to back you. So are Tibarn and Naesala."

"Not Naesala. Or maybe even Tibarn. I mean, we're friendly, but—"

"Micaiah, you're, like, the most popular kid in school. It's kind of ridiculous, actually. But they both would back you, if for no other reason than their impulsive natures."

"Now come up with an explanation for Goldoa, huh?"

"Rajaion is already involved in the war. And Kurthnaga? I mean, please, Micaiah, he never takes his eyes off you. And as much as I hate to admit it, if it came down to war, I'd side… against my father."

"With me."

"That's not how I think of it!"

"With Ike."

"…Better."

Elincia looked around. "Ike would back you?"

Ike jumped to his feet, spinning in circles. "What's on my back?"

"Ike, if someone wanted to kill me, what would you do?" asked Micaiah.

"Bash them through a television screen," Ike replied, not missing a beat.

Elincia winced. "That's violent." She looked around. "By the way, where's Sothe?"

"Buying belly shirts," Micaiah mumbled.

"What?"

"He's with Kara," Soren said.

"Buying belly shirts," Micaiah repeated under her breath.

Just then, Kara and Sothe walked in.

"What were you two doing?"

Suddenly, Micaiah jumped to her feet.

"Elincia!" she exclaimed.

"What?" she asked quietly.

"You should replace the imposter!"

Elincia turned to Ike for guidance. "Pelleas," he mouthed. Her mouth formed an 'o' and she nodded.

"You will?" asked Micaiah eagerly.

"Ah… maybe," Elincia relented. "Ike, I need to talk to you." Ike paused the game and jumped to his feet.

They exited the room together.

"What's going on with the Pelleas thing now?"

Ike grimaced. "You figured out that she won't say his name."

"Well, yes, of course."

"It's getting pretty bad. She learned that we're going to need someone new in our dorm and isn't taking the news too well."

"Why did she ask me, then?"

Ike raised his eyebrow and looked at her as though she were an idiot.

"Because you're probably the only person who's as targeted in this war as Micaiah."

"I'm _what_?"

Ike cleared his throat. "Elincia, surely you've realized just how many people want to kill you?"

She hadn't.

"Ike, this is a joke. Tell me this is a joke."

"I- I'm sorry, Elincia. I'm dead serious."

"I can't! I can't be! I c-can't defend myself, or…"

Ike's lips twisted into a lopsided grin.

"That's where we come in."

. . .

Soren tried really, really hard, but Dheginsea was far too persistent.

Soren had taken to spending every second of his life with Ike, Micaiah, or even Elincia. Sometimes Ranulf was the only option, but he even took him. Soren did not, under any circumstances, want to be alone with his grandfather.

The man cornered him at a student council meeting.

"Soren, I've spoken to the headmistress, and she has agreed that you may be absent for the meeting due to the pressing circumstances."

Shite, the man was acting like Soren _wanted_ to be in his presence. Soren chose to play dumb.

"Is this about my marks, Professor? Last I checked I was a straight 90's student—"

"Don't play dumb, Soren, you can't pull it off."

"What on earth would I need to speak to you about?"

"Your father."

Soren, in a second of shock, allowed Dheginsea to lead him away. He pulled his arm out of the man's grasp, but the man gestured for him to sit down. They were in his office.

"What the hell does my father have to do with anything?"

"He knows who you are, now, thanks to your little escapade during the Gallia trip."

"I didn't have a choice! He was going to kill my friends!"

"There's always a choice, boy."

"Well, I don't regret mine in the least."

"You should! Your thoughtlessness has made you a target!"

"Why the hell do you care?"

Dheginsea looked taken aback for a second. "You're my grandson."

"Well, pardon me for pointing out that you've been a pretty crappy grandfather."

"You have no place to talk. I don't know why you ended up with these people, of all things. If you'd just stayed with your father—"

"I didn't even _know _he was my father, he got rid of me when I was a baby."

"Oh, and pray tell, why?"

"Because I'm a fucking branded, you moron! Now let me go!"

Dheginsea paused for a moment, and shook his head. "I apologize. That was tactless of me."

Soren froze. "You… apologize?"

"Sit down, Soren. Sit down."

Soren half-fell into his chair.

"What is it now?" the boy asked.

"If you plan on surviving this war, Soren, you're going to have to work."

"Work how? Why am I a target?"

"You and the Altina girl are practically walking around with huge targets on your backs. You both represent the most influential people in the war. You have to befriend her."

"Are you shitting me?"

"Soren, I know—"

"Professor, we've been close friends for five years now."

Dheginsea blinked. "Oh. Well, spend more time with her. You have to get on Lehran's good side."

"Lehran?"

"Oh, he goes by Sephiran now, doesn't he? Well, whoever the vice-principal is, get in his good graces."

"Already am."

"Hmm. You're quite good at this. Well, then, the next thing you have to do is befriend Yune."

Soren blinked. "Yune?"

"Yune is the goddess of chaos. You _have_ to have the deities on your side."

"Ashera won't be on my side."

"If you're good enough to the Micaiah girl and to Yune, she will be."

"What if—"

"I'll take care of that."

Soren tilted his head, narrowing his eyes suspiciously.

"Why are you helping me?"

Dheginsea didn't have an answer.

. . .

"I hate English."

"Come on, Ike, it's the only language you know."

"Yeah, well, I hate the class."

"You can't hate it, Ike, we've only had one English class this entire fanfic. It's kind of pathetic."

Ike eyed Micaiah suspiciously. "This is a fanfic?"

"Do you honestly think Kappas naturally ride motorcycles and pick up stray students?" She shook her head. "Anyway, the only thing you hate about English is Bastian."

"But he's so hateable!"

"Who is?"

Ike groaned as Bastian walked into the classroom.

"Oh, goddess, here he is."

Bastian smiled creepily.

"Hello, class!"

"Hello, Professor." Elincia's sullen voice rang through the room

"That's not nearly enough. Try again. Hello, class!"

"KONICHIWA! HOLA! BONJOURNO! BONJOUR!"

Bastian frowned. "This is English class, Mister Gawain. Not Japanese, Spanish, Italian or French."

"HAJIMEMASHITE!"

Micaiah leaned over. "Ike, if we're going to talk another language, please speak one you know."

"I don't know any other language!"

"Well, you're about to learn one."

"What?"

"French." Micaiah cleared your throat. "Professeur, je ne sais plus parler anglais." Professor, I don't speak English anymore.

"Since when?"

"Ce matin." This morning.

"Well, we're doing poetry, and you don't know any French poems."

"LA CIGALE ET LA FOURMI!"

"Non, Ike, tu ne connais pas ce poème." No, Ike, you don't actually know that poem.

"Oh…"

Bastian gritted his teeth. "Who can recite a poem for me?"

Pelleas stood up. Micaiah ran out of the room. He sat down. Micaiah came back in, wiping her mouth and gulping.

"Don't throw up over him," Ike said. "He's not worth an eating disorder."

This was probably the smartest and most sensible thing Ike had said all year. And he had a point. A good point. In fact, it was so good that we'll take a moment to appreciate the best of the Ike intelligence.

_Aayoom…_

Oh wait, that was a few chapters ago.

Bastian grinned.

"YOU JUST SPOKE ENGLISH!"

"NO I DIDN'T!"

"THAT WAS ENGLISH!"

"NO, THAT WAS DVORAK!"

"DVORAK?"

"KAPPA-POO?"

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

"SHADDUP!"

"Professor-"

"WHAT?" he snapped at Elincia.

"Professor, that's the intruder alert."

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

"It has to be a practice, it _has _to be a practice…"

"Pelleas?" interrupted Soren.

"Yes?"

"We're at war."

BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP

Micaiah and Ike stared at each other.

"Well, shit."

Ike dived into the garbage can.

"What are you children doing?" screamed the teacher.

"There's a fucking intruder alert going on, smartass," Micaiah said.

"Did you-"

"I was talking to Ike," she invented wildly. She dove next to the door.  
Somehow all the students managed to hide. And Bastian was under his desk, quivering.

Unfortunately he'd forgotten to lock the door.

So when it swung open, the first thing General Petrine saw was Micaiah's face squished up against the door window. The girl waved like crazy.

"Hiiiiiiiiiiiiiii," she mouthed. Just then, a garbage can fell onto the ground. Out crawled Ike.

"I'm the cookie monster," he declared, lifting his chin in the air and crawling haughtily.

Petrine snarled, grabbed the two by the collars and dragged them away.

"His Majesty has been searching for you two," she said. Micaiah nodded.

"Of course he has."

Micaiah was, in fact, afraid. She just had really special coping techniques.

Ike swung his leg toward Petrine's shin, but she threw him backwards. His back thrust itself into a large arc, and he was suspended in midair for a moment before reality came crashing back in the form of the ground. Ike's head landed hard on the sharp, cold gravel, and he winced. He couldn't hear anything for a moment, and then Micaiah's shrill scream pierced his ears, lecturing Petrine about the dangers to the back of his head, and he heard a loud, resounding slap.

He leapt to his feet.

"You did not just slap Micaiah."

His leg swept into a graceful arc, fast as lightning, and slammed itself into her shin. His elbow landed right in the middle of her stomach, and then he pulled away in case she vomited.

"IKE! MICAIAH!"

It would seem that Petrine had not been the only one intruding in the school. A tall man the pair recognized to be General Bryce was dragging a pair of students as well. Once they were within range, Elincia threw herself into Ike's arms. Micaiah, Soren, and everything that was still visible of Ike engaged in a glaring match with the Riders.

"Hello, Petrine," Soren said maliciously. "How's the birthmark?"

Petrine stiffened. "I don't—"

"Please, Petrine," said Soren, "we're like birds of a feather—oh, but you don't really like birds, do you?"

He was just bluffing, just buying time, but it was succeeding, and Petrine found herself wondering just how much Ashnard's son knew.

Meanwhile, Micaiah was up next to Bryce, fluttering her eyelashes in his face.

"Are you sure this is what you want? Just this?" she asked. She, too, was totally bluffing and wanted to smack him upside the head, but he look unsettled enough that maybe, just maybe, they'd manage.

And then a beacon of hope came in the form of King Dheginsea.

"Please leave the school premises," the man demanded, in a deep, rumbling tone.

Petrine started. "King Dheginsea… I… what are you doing here?"

"I work at this school," he said simply.

"Get. Out. Of. My. Way," came another voice.

All spun around to see Sephiran charging at them, robes billowing behind him. A few Daien soldiers running up to reinforce the Generals disintegrated in a shower of light.

"No," Petrine said simply. "I don't think I will."

As Petrine readied her lance, Micaiah saw something horrific.

The back of Ike's blue hair… was red.

She reached out and touched it, and brought her fingers to her lips. Blood.

"Ike, how hard did you fall?"

No response. Elincia let go of him.

"Ike?"

And all of a sudden, he crumbled to the ground. Micaiah screamed, falling to her knees and reaching out her hands, hoping and praying and to hell with whoever saw—

-a white, glowing light emerged from her fingertips, trickling its way around Ike's body to the back of his head—

-and as the boy sat up, the silver-haired maiden crumbled on top of him, her eyes fluttering closed.

Ike rose to his feet, swaying slightly, clutching Micaiah's unconscious body well away from the Daien army.

And as Soren and Elincia rushed over, and Sephiran and Dheginsea prepared to fight, a red-haired figure appeared on the roof.

As she stood there, something was understood.

War was upon them.


	16. Physical Exams

**_Yune: Hey guys, I'm really sorry this is so late. _**

**_Disclaimer: I totally don't own the mouse my cat plays with..._**

**_Hope you guys enjoy_**

**_

* * *

_**

Micaiah's eyes fluttered open, she found herself in her dorm room completely surrounded by pillows. She didn't have the slightest idea as to why the pillows were in her room and made an attempt to look over her bed, only to wince in pain before lying back down again.

A door opened suddenly, Micaiah positively sure it was her own door and not the trap door that was located under her bed…which no one really knew about except for Micaiah.

A girl with long violet hair pushed her way through the soft obstacles, soon arriving at Micaiah's bedside.

"Sanaki!" Micaiah reached for the younger girl, pulling her in to a hug.

"I'm so glad to see you awake Micaiah!" Sanaki said after pulling away, "You've had us all worried to death."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Two days." Replied Sanaki, who was comfortably sitting on a pile of pillows.

"Where's Ike?" the silverette asked.

"Oh he's in here somewhere."

"Pardon?"

Sanaki giggled, "Micaiah, he hasn't left your side this whole time. Most of your dorm slept in here for the past two days until Sephiran came in and explained that it was gross for five people to be sharing a room."

Micaiah nodded and it suddenly made sense as to why her room was covered in pillows.

She stared around the room before fixing her eyes on the outfit Sanaki was wearing; they were the Begnion robes that the empress wore on special occasions.

"Official business?" Micaiah asked in a low whisper.

"Things aren't exactly going smoothly…" The empress lowered her gaze, feeling depressed.

"I'm sorry…" the older girl placed a hand on the younger's shoulder, the two giving each other a smile.

A hand reached out from under the pillows, as if it were a zombie crawling out of the ground. Out emerged a blue-haired teen; he stared at Micaiah for a few seconds before realizing the girl was awake.

She couldn't tell if he was happy or sad, since his face wasn't exactly clear. She waved a few times to make sure he was awake.

"I'm wide awake dumbass, if you weren't aware." She said, crossing her arms.

"What the hell did you do?" he asked.

"Nice to see you too." She sighed, "No idea."

Sephiran walked in to the room, looking around unsurprised.

"Ike get cleaning." He ordered the boy, and then looked at Micaiah, "Thank the goddess you're awake…" he smiled with relief.

She could see in his face that he hadn't slept for quite sometime. There were dark circles under his eyes and he was pale. The girl realized that she had never seen the vice-principal in such a state.

"You're lucky to be alive Micaiah." The man said quietly, "Do you have any idea what ability that was?" she shook her head, "I've seen it a few times before… it's classified as 'Sacrifice'."

Sanaki frowned, "I don't get it."

"It uses up the energy of the person using it, though it can sometimes affect their life force. It shouldn't be used. Do you understand Micaiah?" Sephiran was being serious, so serious Micaiah was almost afraid.

"Sephiran…?" Micaiah whispered, but was interrupted by Ike.

"SEPHIRAN, WHERE THE HELL IS THE SCARBBLE BOARD?"

The man turned, "Zelgius has it."

"Oh my god, Zelgius is that _bed_ hair?"

The usually meditating gym teacher opened his eyes quickly, staring in to another two set of eyes (if that's humanly possible,). He felt as if his personal bubble was being invaded… yes, his bubble. The two were obviously in his bedroom, which meant they had somehow gotten through his door. It wasn't much of a surprise since his door was just a regular door. Still, the fact that they had snuck in to the teacher's dormitory without getting caught was remarkable.

Micaiah was feeling much better, in fact she felt amazing. Lying in bed wasn't an option for her; she needed to do something.

Ike and Micaiah suddenly walked towards the bookshelf, staring intently at Zelgius' collection.

"Whoa, Zelggy-weggy has some ultra rare games here!" Micaiah exclaimed and continued browsing through the shelf.

Ike was staring at the shelf as well, "Hey Zelggers, we should have a party at some point."

The gym teacher sighed, "What are you two doing here?"

The two looked at each other, confused, "…Zelly, you said we could always come in to your room." Micaiah said innocently.

…_The hell? _"You're absolutely sure I said that?"

Ike laughed, "'course not, are _we_ ever sure of _anything_? We just came by to borrow the scrabble board."

_The scrabble board? Is that here…? Did Ashera- oh it was Sephiran that gave it to me for safe keeping… Wait, how did they find out I had it?_

"Why are you looking here?" Zelgius asked.

Micaiah stood up and looked around surprised, "Oh… it isn't here?"

"Well…" Zelgius scratched his head, "No it isn't."

The two snapped their fingers and shook their heads, quickly fleeing the room.

Only then did Zelgius, the usually punctual teacher, realize he was ten minutes late for his first class.

Soren sat in the back of the classroom, along with Ike Micaiah and Kara. He didn't feel the obligation to sit in the front during History class; he downright refused to sit at the front while listening to the man who was related to him.

Suddenly he asked where the teacher's desk was, only to discover it was in the back of the room. Soren officially hated his life.

Dheginsea sat at his desk for quite some time, the students weren't sure if they were supposed to work or talk. He mumbled to himself a few times about something before getting up and leaving the room.

Soren stared at Kara, Kara stared at Micaiah, Micaiah stared at Ike, and Ike stared at the door as it opened again.

"Students, you will immediately fill these papers out." The history teacher said as the papers were passed around.

Various questions were written on the sheet, Soren stared at the last question.

_Where is the 'Ring of Fire' located?_

After all the papers were picked up, Dheginsea then corrected them within seconds before handing them back to the students. Each of them had funny expression of their faces, Micaiah laughed at her result.

"I'm saddened that no one knew where the Ring of Fire is located…" the history lowered his head.

He turned to Soren, "I'm surprised that one of my best students didn't know the answer. Do you know where it is?"

"Err…" Soren, "Yes… it's-"

"So you do know!" the teacher walked towards Soren's desk.

"UH, NO." Soren leaned back when the history teacher was in front of him, it was as if the man gave of some horrible stench.

"Oh really?"

"Really."

"What color is your hair?"

"Blackish-green."

"Your eyes?"

"Red"

"Who is that boy over there?"

"Ike."

"What dorm are you in?"

"Hero."

"Did you fail that test on purpose?"

"Yes."

Soren's eyes widened, he covered his mouth and stood up.

"NO WAIT."

"You failed purposely! Soren of all the people…" Dheginsea shook his head "It makes me sad."

Micaiah bolted up in her seat, surprising everyone around her. Pelleas was the only student who remained facing forward.

"I thought it was in Goldoa!" she exclaimed.

Ike laughed, "At least you didn't write what mister hotshot knight did over there."

"Shut up Ike." Geoffrey mumbled.

Elincia then admitted she had written the wrong answer as well, Ike insisted that Geoffrey's answer was even worse.

"Oh I'm sure it can't be that bad." Crimea's heir giggled, "Right Geoffrey?"

The said knight nodded desperately, "I'm sure what Ike wrote is just as bad as mine."

Ike smiled proudly, "I said it was located on Pandora."

Faith and Oscar tilted their heads, "Pandora? As in, the planet Pandora?"

Mia stared at Ike for a few seconds, "That isn't a real planet Ike."

"No shit." He laughed, "I don't have the slightest idea where the ring of fire is. So I took a guess like mister knight over there, but mine seems better than his."

This time the blue haired teenager stood and made his way over to Ike, "Do you have a problem with me?"

"Nope."

Micaiah went over to Geoffrey's paper when Elincia dropped down laughing.

"Oh my go-" the silver haired girl fell over and laughed hysterically.

"Wow, it's really that bad?" Ike asked when things had quieted down; everyone had looked back and stared at Ike.

Pelleas hadn't moved at all, he kept his gaze towards the front. At some point, Elincia had seen him and felt some sympathy for him.

When class was almost over, Dheginsea realized something and clapped his hands.

"I'm sure you're aware that we have physical exams today. Your next teacher will give further instructions." With that, the bald man made his way out of the classroom.

Soren and Micaiah gave each other a horrified glance before their religion teacher walked in.

"I'm posting the list for the exams, please follow them carefully." Sephiran clipped the paper on the board and told the class it was a working period.

"Hey Micaiah…" Ike leaned over.

"Yeah?"

"I've been thinking… what are Ashera, Sephiran and Zelgius to us?"

"Our family?"

"No, like who'd be 'mom', 'dad'…"

"Ike this totally sounds ridiculous…" Micaiah whispered when Sephiran stared at them, well… more like glared.

Ike insisted, "I'm serious Micaiah."

"Ashera would probably be mom… Sephiran dad and Zelgius…" she broke off, tilted her head and thought, "Uncle?"

"Huh, uncle?"

Micaiah stared at him questioningly, "What's wrong with him being an uncle-like figure?"

"I don't know… he feels like a brother to me."

Elincia noticed a very nervous Faith.

"Is something wrong?" she asked the girl, who turned in shock.

"NO!" she almost screamed, Sephiran cleared his throat, "Nothing's wrong Elincia, thanks for asking."

"Well… alright…"

The Otaku suddenly leaned in, "She's just scared of the exams."

"Really?"

Faith blushed, "I… you know…" her name was called; she got up and walked away stiffly.

"Poor her…" Elincia said.

"Don't worry, that girl is only afraid of the scale." The Otaku said with a laugh.

"I wouldn't joke about it…" Elincia frowned, "How long have you known Faith?"

"A while." Came the reply.

"Do you ever take the cape off?"

"Perhaps."

"I checked in all the yearbooks, you had it in every single picture." Elincia stated.

"Do you like stalking people?" the Otaku asked bluntly.

Elincia turned a shade of pink, "I'm not stalking you! I'm only trying to see who's under there!"

Then came another laugh, "You'll have to try a lot harder than that princess."

A nurse came in the classroom, "Otaku." She said clearly.

Elincia went over to Sephiran, "The person that just walked out… what's their name on the attendance list?"

"Otaku."

She knew that her next question would enable her to learn something, "Are they a girl of boy?"

"Otaku."

"Excuse me?"

"That's all that's written." Sephiran shrugged, Elincia went back to her seat in silence.

Pelleas still sat in his seat, only looking to the side when a floorboard came flying off the floor. Ashera popped out of the floor looking better than ever, her long orange hair tied in a long ponytail. Zelgius walked through the door moments later.

Ike, Micaiah and Soren then noticed that the room was basically empty. Aside from them, Pelleas, Elincia, Kara and Sothe were still in the room.

Ike jumped up, "Mommy!"

"Mommy?" Ashera's eyes narrowed, she then shot a glance at Sephiran.

"Daddy!" Micaiah shouted at Sephiran.

"Uh…"

Ike then turned to Zelgius, "Uncle! Or older brother if you prefer!"

"Ike I'm too old to be your brother." The gym teacher sighed.

"Thirty doesn't seem that old Zelggers." Ike said.

Sephiran sighed loudly, "He means it Ike. He's special."

Soren and Micaiah pointed at Zelgius, their jaws open, the gym teacher didn't understand. Soren bashed his head against the desk and Micaiah did a dance unfamiliar to humankind. The two finally realized something about the teacher that they shared in common and yes, their specialness.

Sephiran raised an eyebrow and nodded as if he understood.

"I'm special." Ike said.

"Ike it's sort… complicated." Sephiran rolled his eyes, "You'll understand when you have kids or something."

"Why does everyone use that excuse? Why is Zelgius so special? Is he the Black Knight or something? That'd be totally crazy! Or are you going to say that he's my father or something? Ha, that'd be so funny. Imagine him being my dad and the Black Knight! That would be total coolness! Except then it be like, I'd have to kill him cause he killed my other father… wait, I couldn't have two dads… but Sephiran is my dad…"

Zelgius and Sephiran stared at the boy in shock as he continued.

Micaiah stopped him, raising a hand to silence him, "Ike, he's just special."

"What are you special also?" he asked with a sullen face.

"Yeah…" she stared at Sephiran, who coughed and looked away.

"Oh so now you're gonna say that Soren's special too?"

Soren gazed to the side, Micaiah nodded.

"Why the hell am I not considered special?" Ike asked Sephiran.

"They're in a different league of specialness…" the religion teacher explained.

Zelgius nodded, "Ike, you do realize that we're only your legal guardians?"

Elincia turned, "So wait, all three of you?"

Ashera shook her head, "No, only Sephiran and myself are his legal guardians. Zelgius is not officially a guardian, he is there because he is friends with Sephiran."

Elincia nodded slowly, "So you raised them?"

"Yes." Ashera replied in a monotone voice.

"So you and Sephiran are really like a mom and dad to them! That's really sweet!" Elincia giggled.

Sephiran was clearly embarrassed, "Elincia don't get the wrong idea!"

Ashera smiled, following along, "I have always wanted children of my own. We just never had the time for it, eventually these two knuckleheads made their way into our lives. Since that day, we've made it our top priority to raise them."

"Hey Sephiran…" Micaiah went to him.

"What is it Micaiah?"

"Why do you wear a ring on your marriage finger?"

"Uhh…" Sephiran cringed.

"So you are Ashera ARE married!"

"What?" he cried.

Zelgius appeared surprised, "Sir, is it true?"

"Of course not!"

Ashera laughed, surprising everyone in the room. Ike and Micaiah had hardly ever heard the woman laugh, heck they hadn't seen her smile in such a long time either.

"No child, we aren't married. Sephiran married another woman."

"Where is she now?" Elincia asked.

Sephiran's expression changed suddenly, a sad smile curved his lips "She died."

Elincia covered her mouth; Soren stopped whatever he had been doing and stared at the man.

"I'm sorry." Micaiah said before giving the man a hug, which he returned after a moment of shock.

A nurse came in, feeling awkward when she stared at the group.

"Um, Soren, Micaiah, Elincia and Ike…"

They made their way towards the physical exam room.

"So what are the exams like here?" Elincia asked curiously.

Soren and Micaiah asked the same.

"Wait, you guys have been here as long as I have! You know what they're like." Ike said.

Soren appeared angry, "Wow Ike, and here I thought you were my best friend. I kept telling you every year that I don't do physical exams."

"Why are you doing it this year?"

"I'm being forced, it's the same with Micaiah." Soren replied, Micaiah nodding.

"Well this is news to me!" he cheered happily before turning, "Let me guess, it's cause the both of you are 'special'?"

Elincia giggled, "So what are they like? I mean, there must be some spectacular event."

Ike stopped walking, "What do you mean? Just because we go to Guidance Tower Academy, doesn't mean we have weird exams." He laughed, "It's just like any other school. They just check you out to see if your healthy or not!" Ike then ripped his shirt off, continuing down the hallway.

Elincia was speechless, not exactly sure what to make of the situation.

Kieran was loud, really loud. The Crimean knights had gone first for their exams; they would be leaving right after. That aside… the point was that Kieran was really loud. Everything the boy said could be heard inside the tower. Teachers often asked him to sit at the bottom of the tower, setting him up with a walkie-talkie they would ask him for answers in class by communicating with him through it.

Elincia, Ike, Micaiah and Soren were talking, when suddenly a booming voice interrupted.

"Holy shizzle nizzle! I found a nickel!" Kieran shouted from somewhere, "Must be my lucky day! HEY GUYS, I FOUND A NICKEL!"

Presumably, someone must have answered him.

"GUYS, I AM TOTALLY HEALTHY APPARENTLY! OH, THEY SAID I WAS MISSING A FEW SCREWS IN THE HEAD BUT I HAVE NO CLUE ABOUT THAT!"

He came running, half naked like Ike. He and Ike thumbed up each other with wide grins.

"BELIEVE IN YOURSELF!" they shouted together before running off in different directions.

The four suddenly found themselves in a rather large room, doctors and nurses smiling so hard that their faces appeared to be stuck that way.

Soren glared at them all, "I'm so glad to see such happy and jovial faces." He mumbled sarcastically, "They should seriously skip all of this shit and go jump in a hole already."

Ike, still without a shirt, gasped, "Soren, why have you been in such a foul mood these past chapters?"

"Why don't you go read them yourself?" Soren suggested.

Micaiah was in a very similar mood, "Ike?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I hit you?"

"Uh… no…" he turned towards her, noticing her fist being raised.

Soren and Micaiah were brought in to a different room, leaving Ike and Elincia behind.

"Hey… do you think Micaiah is…"

"No Ike, I don't want to hear it." Elincia cut him off, "Say have you noticed Pelleas lately?"

"Yeah… I kinda feel bad for him. Micaiah acts as if the guy doesn't even exist, like she doesn't even acknowledge his presence. I'd hate to be in his place."

Elincia didn't reply. She knew what Pelleas had done was awful, but she couldn't help but feel sorry for him. She knew the pressure he went though, to a certain extent. He was the son of the most evil man in Tellius, and the boy definitely would never follow in his father's footsteps. The two were so different, unless of course Pelleas hid a dark side of him… but that was doubtful.

The squinting Oscar was sitting with his doctor, who was testing his eyesight. No knew if the green haired boy could actually see, but they presumed he did. His target scores were some of the highest in the Tower.

Nearby was a scowling Boyd, who was trying to calm his younger brother.

Mia was explaining something about her trip to Gallia to a doctor, saying it was traumatizing and horrible. Heather and Illyana were also saying similar things, though the happy and chirpy doctors didn't have much of a solution to their problems.

"What the hell is with these doctors?" Mia asked once they were finished.

"They're real freaky…" Heather shuddered, "Ain't they strange?"

"Maybe they're aliens." Said Illyana, then added, "Do either of you have something to eat?"

"Honey, you're gonna get real fat when that metabolism kicks in when you're thirty." the purple haired girl shrugged, "Don't say I didn't warn ya." Heather handed the girl a huge chocolate bar, which disappeared seconds later.

Mia grinned, "To hell with these exams. They're really just a formality!"

Ranulf almost screamed when he saw his doctor, the man was freaky.

Ike noticed this as he was making his way through the room; he patted Ranulf's shoulder.

"What's wrong with you?"

Ranulf was trying to recover from the sight of his doctor, "IKE, that guy has the weirdest hair in history! It's lime-green and switches every few seconds."

"Ranulf, we all have freaky hair." Ike pointed out, "You have blue hair, like shiny blue."

Ranulf considered the point before looking up at Ike's head, "You have blue hair Ike."

"I have sexy blue hair." Ike replied with a smile, continuing down the rows without his shirt.

Elincia rolled her eyes and giggled, following Ike.

Suddenly the blue-haired boy stopped, cringed and turned around with a disgusted look. "I HAVE THE SAME COLOR OF HAIR AS PELLEAS!" he shouted at the top of his lungs.

Elincia hadn't given it much thought, but nodded and was thankful the poor boy wasn't in the room.

A small girl with blue hair skipped by, Elincia and Ike stared at her. Ike was still not getting over the discovery of having the same colored hair as Pelleas. He was even angrier that another person had the same color.

"Hey blue freak, middle school exams are over there!" Ike shouted, leaning over the girl when she stopped to glare up at him.

"If you weren't aware, I'm in the same grade as you Jerk-face." She growled.

Mia and Boyd ran over to her, Mia placing her arm around the girl's shoulder, "Yeah, Yue is on the swim team with me!"

Boyd was apparently just tagging along.

Ike was called; he skipped away and followed the nurse.

"So doc, don't be shy! Check me out, I'll tell you anything you need to know!" he flexed his muscles, somewhat scaring the doctor sitting in front of him.

"Extremely healthy." He wrote on a paper, "Well Ike, I'll see you next year."

He was disappointed, extremely disappointed. He drew a sad face on a scrap paper and taped it to his face. He walked by all the students in silence, finally stopping next to Tibarn.

Tibarn had no shirt, heck; he hardly ever wore a shirt. Ike looked at a familiar disappointed face.

"Was yours fast too?" Ike asked.

"They think I'm on steroids…" Tibarn replied absentmindedly.

"Oh…"

"Oh, indeed Ike." Tibarn stared down at his own paper; "Well…" he walked away, upset.

Ike continued walking around with his unhappy face paper, making sure everyone saw it.

Soren and Micaiah sat in a separate room, another young girl joining them some minutes later. Micaiah recognized the girl.

"Yue?" she asked.

"Uh-huh?" Yue asked in a small voice.

"What… what are you doing here?" Soren turned his head.

"I'm here for my exam. Just like you two." She replied in a sweet voice.

"No… well," Micaiah began, "Are you um…"

"Branded?" Yue asked with a smile.

"Yeah…"

"Yes, I am." Then her name was called, she waved a small hand before disappearing in to another room.

Soren and Micaiah had spent a few years skipping physical exams, due to being branded. They knew the students were made aware of special people, but the teachers never went into further detail concerning the subject. Soren and Micaiah could easily fit in with others, but certain people were sensitive when around branded.

A doctor called for Micaiah.

"See you later Soren." She walked away and left the boy sitting in the room.

Physical exams ended quickly, Soren and Micaiah were officially the talk of the school. Everyone avoided them and made it obvious they didn't want to talk. Ashera noticed this.

The morning after exams, Soren was sitting in Micaiah's room.

"Soren… we totally need to cover our brands." She said seriously.

"You can easily cover yours." He replied, pointing to the gloves on her hands.

"Then let's find something for you to wear!" she rummaged through her belongings, tearing her whole room apart.

Soren opened his laptop and started typing away.

"FOUND IT!" Micaiah screamed loudly.

Soren turned his head, "What is it?"

"A headband."

Glove-wearing Micaiah and headband-wearing Soren made their way to class, avoiding the stares of other students. They tried to find Yue, the one person they could possibly relate to, but were unsuccessful. The girl was registered and everything.

"She switches grades all the time. One day she'll be in your class, the next she won't. We don't really keep track of where she goes." A happy secretary answered once they built up enough courage to talk to the creepy woman.

Once in the science lab, Titania announced it would be the final class she would be teaching.

"So we're just going to do a lab today, something easy so we can all have fun." She smiled, "Get into groups of two please."

Everyone paired up, Soren and Micaiah were the only ones left.

"GODDAMMIT, TO HELL WITH ALL OF THIS!" screamed a very frustrated Soren, he was about to leave but turned, "I can't help being branded it's the way I was born! If you all have issues with it, screw you."

Micaiah sat with her mouth open, all the other students included. No one knew if they should stop the boy or not, they decided not to. Soren left the room while yelling about going to see the source of his problems.

Micaiah was forced to join Ike (Still shirtless) and Elincia's group, the two students who didn't mind being paired up with the silver-haired girl.

Soren, meanwhile, was making his way towards the history department. He didn't really care if the history teacher was there or not, he'd wait for him and talk to him. To his disappointment, Dheginsea was patiently sitting at his desk. He was even drinking a cup of tea.

"You." Soren spoke angrily.

"What is it Soren?"

"I friggin hate you."

"I can see that."

"No, you don't understand my anger." Soren grumbled.

"Well… no one is stopping you from expressing it." Dheginsea turned to face Soren.

"Aside from you being related to me, you're suddenly a teacher at my school. You go out of your way to ruin my life, no… your daughter, is probably the real problem here. She one day decided to go off and marry some freakin' psychopath, aka King Ashnard. Now I'm stuck with this damn brand," Soren ripped the headband off, "I'm the center of attention because of you and your annoying daughter! HELL, she doesn't even know I exist! Listen as I tell you what happened. We were separated when I was born, I was sent to some random village to live there. Ashnard obviously either didn't want me as his heir or he didn't want me because of the damn brand, I wouldn't really know. So I grew up a bitter child, hating everyone that surrounded me." Dheginsea was about to interrupt, Soren stopped him "I'M NOT DONE."

"I had a certain hope that my birthmother would one day come to find me, though I gave up once I turned five. Of course I didn't know Ashnard and Almedha were my parents, I just resumed that my parents would someday find me and bring me home."

Dheginsea appeared to be in deep thought, "When did you…?"

"When did I find out Ashnard was my father? Just recently actually." Soren said with a shrug, "But you know what pisses me off more than anything? Your daughter couldn't tell the difference between _him_ and me_._ Neither of us actually resembles the man, thank the goddess but… the reason behind her choice, it was the color of his hair! So if I paraded around with blue hair, she'd have chosen me? Hear me dragon king, I hate everything about you and your worthless family! I hate that annoying Kurthnaga who self-pities himself because of a conflict or two and that other son of yours who acts like some big showoff because he's the next king of Goldoa. Words are not even possible to express my anger towards your daughter; she is by far the vilest woman I have ever unofficially met."

The elder did not speak; he eyed Soren carefully while slowly drinking his tea.

Finally he shifted his gaze towards the window, "I'm sorry you feel like that Soren."

"If it weren't for your mother's desperation, she would have most likely found you. She saw Pelleas and rejoiced at the thought of finally seeing her son after being apart from him for so long, she did not think of the one detail that set her child apart from others. His birthmark or brand." Dheginsea sipped his tea again, "You see Soren… your mother never even knew you had the brand, she didn't even see you after you were born."

"What do you mean?" Soren asked.

"I made it my ultimate goal to get you away from my daughter, though I only realized later that I took not only her happiness away… but yours as well. I thought of only my kingdom, myself and how a union between a laguz and human would produce something unwanted. "

"You expect me to take that as an apology and be fine with it? I still don't forgive her for what she did."

"No Soren, I don't expect that from you. You may go on hating me and my other sons for any reasons, you never had to be friends with them to begin with. The one person you must realize was never at fault was your mother. Please Soren."

"I'd rather go jump off a cliff and die in a hole than forgive that woman."

The history teacher sighed, "You fail to see my point."

"You realize I just hate you more right?"

"I'm not stopping you, I only want you to forgive my daughter. I ask nothing else of you."

"I'll think about it."

Soren didn't surface from his room for some time, not even Kara could squeeze her way past the door. He remained in his room for over 48 hours. Micaiah stayed in hers for quite some time as well. The rest of the dorm wondered how they ate, though remembered the two branded children had fridges in their room.

Ike, still shirtless, sat opposite Sephiran when the vice-principal sat down for coffee.

The poor man nearly spit out his drink at the sight of Ike.

"I-Ike, what're you doing going around without a shirt?"

"Do you know who Micaiah's parents were?"

Sephiran's eye twitched, "No… why?"

"I swear I will find them and give them a piece of my mind. They're making her suffer so much right now… she's being teased and bullied because of that damn specialness of hers."

"People simply don't understand her 'situation' Ike. Give it time, the students will forget." Sephiran wiped around his mouth with his handkerchief.

Ashera popped out from under the table, scaring Ike and causing Sephiran to once again spit out his coffee.

"HOLY SHIT!" Ike screamed, "How long have you been under there?"

"Long enough. I am truly unable to stand the stench of feet; they're such horrible parts of the body. Have you ever looked at one? They look absolutely terrifying. " She answered, "You realize that you have also isolated Micaiah and Soren."

Sephiran agreed, "I suppose you're both right…" Ike said finally, "But I really do want to find her parents or her ancestors."

Ashera raised an eyebrow, "Do you even know what the names of her parents were?"

"Billy-Joe and Mary Jane." Sephiran cut in, Ashera laughed.

"Those are some kickass names!" Ike exclaimed, "But seriously."

Ashera pulled a chair up to the table, "We never knew her parents Ike. I knew yours, but never hers."

"I think it' about time you used your own specialness Ike, to get Micaiah back into her old self." Sephiran said once he finished drinking.

Ashera was now wearing a baseball cap and uniform, "Well said. Now I must be off." With that being said, she disappeared into the seat of the chair.

The students of Guidance Tower Academy said their farewells to the Crimean army, wishing them luck in the war. Micaiah and Soren were slowly accepted back, returning to their normal habits.

"Who wants to play scrabble?" Ike asked in the dinning room.

Teachers and students took part, the Kappas joining in the fun as well. No one could have ever guessed they were in the middle of a war. Ashera wanted her students to remain distracted for as long as they could, but knew it would only get harder for them as time went on. She feared the war was much worse than what she imagined…

* * *

**_Thanks for reading! Please comment!_**


	17. Prom Wars: Part I

**A/N: I know it's been forever! I finished this chapter ages ago and forgot to update it, I'm really sorry. This is part one of an epic… three parter. **

Ashera stood at the front of the Dining Hall, her eyes more narrow than usual as she surveyed the students in front of her. They were each at their round wooden tables that somehow never broke, but rather than being rambunctious, they were quiet and sullen. It was not hard to see why; the empty seat at the teacher's table, and the empty places in the hall, were all to present a reminder of the war surrounding them from all around.

Ashera noticed that two of the tables had been pushed together, so that Micaiah and Sanaki were seated next to each other. Micaiah was rubbing small circles into Sanaki's back, encouraging her to eat. Sanaki was pale as a ghost and had large bags under her eyes. Ike, meanwhile, was running from table to table stealing cakes and desserts and fruits and any sweet foods he could find so Sanaki could eat something, even if it was full of sugar and transfat.

"What am I supposed to do?" she asked Micaiah. "If I send out the men, I'm sentencing them to death… but if I don't, I'm sentencing the rest of the country, aren't I?"

"I trust your judgment, Sanaki," was all the silverette said. "I trust you."

"_Hem hem_," coughed Ashera. Immediately all the sound in the chamber ceased.

"These are dark times," she said, stating the not-so-obvious, judging by the looks on the student's faces. "Daein and Crimea are in full-blown war, and as we saw the other day, not even the Academy is perfectly safe."

Murmurs scattered through the hall, but were silenced when Ashera spoke again.

"I would like to apologize for my own failure with the protection of this establishment," she continued. "From now on, rest assured that the security of the campus will be my highest priority."

She stopped talking, letting the students text their parents. She knew the announcement would be in the news first thing tomorrow, and circulating the internet before then.

"And now, on a completely different note, there will be a prom on Friday in the prom hall."

"Prom hall?" whispered Elincia to Ike.

Ike and Micaiah shared a _look_. "Prom is kind of Ashera's thing," explained Micaiah, leaning across the table.

"Whenever things get bad, and she doesn't really know what to do, she throws prom."

Elincia's eyebrows drew together. "I thought proms were supposed to be at the end of the year," she said.

"Try telling that to Ashera," whispered Ike.

"She never got the point," said Micaiah confidentially. Elincia giggled. From the High Table, Sephiran raised his eyes at the new friendship.

"Dress code is semi-formal. If you're socially illiterate, or simply a dunderhead, that means… just ask Ike and Micaiah, they've been to enough of these. The sight of your mediocrity is making me too sick to keep talking." She spun on the spot and disappeared.

"And that," said Micaiah from the table top, addressing the shocked faces, "is what happens when Ashera watches too much Glee."

"Glee?" asked someone who obviously wasn't privilege to the miracle of life that was Glee.

"Sue Sylvester, duh!" Micaiah hopped down from the wooden surface and grabbed Ike's tie, dragging him off. Apparently they were done eating.

"Wait!" called Elincia. Both stopped. "You two may be used to proms, but most of us haven't ever been before."

"And besides," called Ashera, "I'm not done talking."

"Ashera!" yelled Tibarn. "Have you recovered from our mediocrity?"

She nodded and held up a Red Bull. "Yes, for the moment. Thank you for your concern." She looked around. "So as you are all doubtlessly aware, Professor Titania is off serving for the Crimean Army. She has my blessing."

Silence. Did Ashera really give someone her blessing? That was pretty huge, the goddess' blessing.

"Personally, I'd rather suspend all science classes until she returns—and mark my words, she will return—but the Senate-"

A boo went up in the crowd; none of the students liked the senate much. Sanaki had all the support in the school.

"But the senate has decreed that you must learn science, as it is a very important—I can't finish that sentence. This is Professor Izuka. He is from Daein. Treat him with the _respect he deserves_."

"None at all," Ike translated to the people surrounding him. Mia snickered.

"Also," said Ashera, "on a completely different note that has absolutely nothing to do with Izuka or any sick and twisted ways he might have, if you are perchance a laguz or related to King Ashnard, dropping science class might not be a horrible idea."

"I know him!" whispered Pelleas. Everyone save Elincia listened. "He conducts experiments on the laguz. He works for my father."

"You are one sorry fool if you believe for a second that you're actually his son," hissed Soren, vindictive and cruel. Just then, his cell phone vibrated. He scowled at the text message waiting for him.

_**Izuka recognized you. Be very careful. I'll keep an eye on him.**_

Soren glared up at his grandfather just to show what he thought of the man's… grandfatherly concern.

"Hey!" exclaimed Micaiah. "Harry Potter 7 comes out today!"

She wasn't very loud, but since she was sitting at the most popular table of the school half the student body heard her anyway, or received a text quoting her. Micaiah was something of a celebrity at the school; people took pictures of her wherever she went, they asked for her autograph, they went through her trash. The girls in the school dressed like her, walked like her, styled their hair like her (a few even died it, but they usually ended up looking like old farts). Ike was also ridiculously popular. The school magazine (because newspapers were so last century) usually had them on the front cover, and article after article about what they'd been up to that week.

And the worst part was that the magazine sold really well. It often featured Sanaki, or Pelleas, or Elincia, or another royal. But Micaiah and Ike (or Alwaine, as their fans liked to call them as a couple) didn't really share their page time with their peers. All this to say that every word she said would be on the internet pronto.

"We should totally go, yeah?" said Ike, grinning. "It'd be a break from all this war stress."

"I guess," mumbled Kara, who was actually not cheerful for once.

Micaiah and Ike stared at her in shock for a second. "Yeah. We definitely need to get a break from the war stress."

The teachers were clearing out of the room. Micaiah stood on the table, not willing to speak and be overheard, and waved her cell phone above her head. She then texted furiously.

Everyone got an invitation to a **HARRY POTTER AND THE DEATHLY HALLOWS VIEWING PARTY.**

Well, not everyone, because then not everyone would fit in the theater and that would suck. But quite a few people who Micaiah actually liked were invited. As Ike read his text, he slapped himself in the head.

"Oh yeah!" he exclaimed. He looked over at Elincia, and tried to shout over to her, but couldn't be heard over the screaming Micaiah's impromptu party plans had instigated. So he had to resort to what he'd learned from Harry Potter.

He pointed at Elincia, mouthing "You." He pretended to dance in his chair, causing her to giggle, and then pointed his thumbs at his chest. "Me?"

She pursed her lips together, and for a moment Ike was worried she was teasing him but she shrugged and nodded. He smiled and leaned back in his seat, but for some reason he didn't feel as satisfied as he would've a few months ago.

"WE ARE GOING TO HARRY FREAKIN' POTTER 'YALL!" he shouted, just for the sake of it. Cheers erupted around him. He grabbed Micaiah's arm and they posed for a couple of pictures before sauntering off to classes.

. . .

"I can't believe I'm saying this, Lehran, but I'm worried."

Ashera stared out the window. Her careless expression was present, as always, but her eyes held a tint of melancholy.

"I didn't sense Ashnard's people breaking through the wards," she said. "They almost took some students." She made a sound in the back of her throat. "I'd forgotten he had hold of blessed weapons and armor."

"You know you're still a Goddess, and he's still a mortal," offered Sephiran. Ashera sighed.

"But the students are mortals, with the exception of Yune. And we came close to losing both Ike and Micaiah that day." She rubbed her forehead. "All this time I've been spending with Yune is rubbing off on me. I'm getting far too…" she frowned. "I shouldn't care this much."

Sephiran said nothing.

"I have to re-ward the campus," she declared. "We're stopping above ground transportation. I want Disciples stationed all around the surface. No one will go up there save them. Each roller coaster entrance will be guarded; from now on, all students must use them. Each of our offices will have constant view from the security cameras." She frowned, and pulled her long hair up into a ponytail. "No one is allowed off campus. No one is allowed out of their dorms after hours. All classes will be conducted inside the tower, no exceptions. There are no excuses to breaching these rules." She frowned. "I'll announce them at dinner time. Get the Disciples ready."

Sephiran nodded and exited the office. As she looked out the window, Ashera's lip quivered.

. . .

"Hey! Micaiah!"

Micaiah turned around to see her green-haired friend running to catch up. She halted until she could walk in pace with the girl.

"I was thinking—when we go to town for Harry Potter—we should go dress shopping!" she said excitedly. Micaiah blinked, and smiled.

"That would be great! I haven't gotten a new dress since… goddess, I don't know!" She grinned enthusiastically.

"Who are you going with?" asked Elincia. She bit her lip. "I mean—I don't mean to prod—if you're alone, you can always come with Ike and I—"

Micaiah laughed. "That's awfully sweet, Elincia. I've had quite a few people asking me to the dance, but I've put them all on hold."

"You're really popular," blurted out the princess before she could think her words through.

Micaiah tilted her head. "I suppose so," she acknowledged. She didn't say it like she was bragging; she was just stating a fact.

"I'm not very popular," admitted Elincia with a downcast look. Micaiah's eyes widened, incredulous.

"Are you kidding me?" she exclaimed. "You're in the Top Twelve! You're definitely an A-lister here."

"People don't listen to me the way they listen to you and Ike," said Elincia sadly.

"People want to be you, Elincia. People are insanely jealous of you. A lot of the students here don't have proper families, or homes. I totally know that it's really tough, what's going on in Crimea, but a lot of the kids here are buttheads and don't get it.

"As for Ike and I, we've been here forever. We've been causing trouble forever. We've been getting ourselves into shit and somehow escaping forever. Hell, I was just kidnapped." She laughed. "People love hearing about us, but no one's stupid enough to want to be us."

"Sometimes I want to be you," said Elincia in a very low voice. "Everything just seems so easy to you. You're good at making friends, you get amazing marks and never seem to study, you can get away with pretty much anything, you're in great shape, all the guys like you but none of the girls hate you for it… sometimes I do want to be you."

Micaiah thought for a second. "I don't actually have that many friends," said the girl. "Until this year I could count them all on one hand. I used to try to be good and kind, but eventually I changed. I just decided to pretend to be crazy, and outgoing, and funny, and after a few years I turned into this crazy person. People think I'm funny, and friendly, and cool, but no one wants to be my good, heart- to -heart sisters- from- different- misters friend.

"And yeah, I do get amazing marks. But I'll tell you a secret." She looked around, and took a step toward Elincia. "When I first came here, when I was five, I was too young to go to school here. And teachers were worried I'd be a bad influence on their kids. So I spent my time in the library." She laughed. "I read every single book in that place over the next few years.

I took advanced study courses online, I worked my ass off. So I don't have to work hard now. I've already done all this."

She took a step back. "What else did you say? Oh, right, I can get away with pretty much everything. Well, that is true." She tried to smile, but she grimaced.

"Do you know that I'm actually a really unhappy person?" she said bluntly. "I saw a counselor for years. I think depressing stuff all the time. I used to spend hours in my room listening to sad music. I used to have legit depression. I'm still a pretty depressed person, deep inside, and to be honest, so is Ike. And so is Soren, but he doesn't hide it. Ike and I spent our childhoods on a battle field praying for our parents to make it back for one more night." She laughed. "Well, Ike's father, at least. I spent my time praying for Sephiran to make it through. My own parents abandoned me when I was born, when they saw… never mind.

"Ike and I met a few minutes before the death of his father. I saw it happen. After that, Ike and I didn't leave each other's sides for a minute. I was the only person keeping him from being totally alone when his father died; he was the only person who could keep me going when Sephiran came back every night, weaker than the night before. Neither of us had anywhere to stay except for a tent big enough for two beds and a small stove. Sephiran had one bed, and we shared the other.

"Some nights Sephiran didn't come home. We could have had separate beds, but we never did. You can't… you can't possibly grasp how it feels to lie there and see the only family you have die a thousand different ways in your head and know that one of them is probably happening that very moment. Or to wake up one morning, and make breakfast for two, not three, before remembering that the third isn't dead…" Micaiah sighed. "I know things are tough for you, Elincia, but I'll put it this way. It's one thing to wake up and fear that someone's dead. It's another to wake up and fear they might be alive."

"Why… why would you fear that?" asked the princess, white.

"Because wherever he would've gone if he'd died, we assumed, had to be better than where he was when he was alive."

Micaiah was quiet for a second. "So yes, I do get away with everything. But there's a damn good reason why."

She shook her head, and summoned a smile onto her face. It looked like a normal, happy smile, but it made Elincia shiver.

"And as for being in great shape… thanks! I work out a lot." She frowned again. "Oh, and plenty of girls do hate me. I just don't give them the time of day." She grinned. "Now what were we saying about dresses? For these proms, the dresses are usually short. We're always in these dreary uniforms. You know, I think you'd look pretty good in orange! Not, like, bright orange, but a softer, autumn orange? Strapless, with a black ribbon belt thing around the waist, with a flared skirt? That would be stunning. I know the perfect store, too!"

The girls got to the History classroom and, with a sigh, opened the door. They sat at the back of the classroom, out of sight of most girls.

Dheginsea strolled into the classroom, looking very high and mighty. Soren swore for no apparent reason.

"Class!" he barked. Everyone, excluding Soren, sat up. "You have another pop quiz, since you all epically failed the last one." Using dragon magic skills, he passed out the papers.

"Hey, that's how they do it in Harry Potter!" Ike exclaimed from his seat between Micaiah and Elincia. Everyone who was going to the movie grinned and chattered, but got to their test after a stern look from Dheginsea.

Micaiah looked down at her paper. _Which kingdom of Tellius has the most efficient political system?_

She had an idea for an answer, but shooed it away. There was no way she was saying that. She toyed with discussing Goldoa, the professor's own kingdom, but she didn't know enough about the place to write a detailed debrief of it. Begnion… the senate and Sanaki were at odds too often. She decided on Gallia.

_The kingdom of Gallia has the most efficient political system_, she wrote. _Out of all the kingdoms, it has the least known history of rebellion. The kingdom…_

Meanwhile, Elincia had already finished her weak essay on why Crimea had the best monarchy. She didn't really believe it, but she couldn't confess that to herself, let alone the world. She was on the second part.

_How did King Ashnard rise to power?_

By being heir to the throne, she wanted to write, but she knew that it was not that simple. _How did King Ashnard rise to power? _She squinted over the last word, and then gasped. Of course! It didn't ask how he'd become king, it'd asked how he'd come to power. And the first comparison that came into her mind was that he'd become ruler in a fashion similar to Adolf Hitler.

But she couldn't straight out say that.

_The Milgram experiment, conducted after World War II, was a quest to understand how Adolf Hitler has been able to rise to power. It proved, among other things, that beorcs can easily be pressured into doing something they know is wrong. In Ashnard's case, he had an easier job; prejudice already ran rampant in Daein and he only had to use it to his advantage…_

Ike had already finished both of those questions—Soren had told him about the blood pact, so that had been easy—but he was stuck on the third one.

_Why is there conflict between the laguz and the beorc?_

Ike had spent the past few minutes trying to come up with a rational, intelligent answer, but the question only served to piss him off.

_To quote James T. Kirk in Star Trek: The Undiscovered Country: "You know Spock, everyone's human." We are all human, because everyone, laguz and beorc alike, share the ability to love and to hate, to grieve and to hope, to reason and to act with to reason at all, to fall prey to emotion, to cry—all the things that make up what we call human nature…_

Soren, meanwhile, felt seriously outraged. What kind of question was his grandfather—dammit, Soren had actually started referring to the man that way in his head—trying to make him think about? _What are the Branded? _Why in Tellius was the man using that word, that horrible, racist, hurtful word, that turned him into something less than human, on an essay? Angry tears burned in Soren's eyes. He blinked them back, and scribbled furiously.

_The Branded are an affront to this world. They do not deserve to live. They should be hunted down and killed, every last one, so they don't taint and burden the earth._

He answered the last question with a single word, dropped the paper on the teacher's desk and left the room.

Kara frowned—actually legit _frowned—_at her paper. She'd seen Soren get up and leave, and wanted to run after him, but his grandfather had already done so. She focused on the last question.

_Is there any hope left for the world?_

Kara didn't even need to think as she wrote her answer.

_There must be, because if there really were not we would all want to die. And last time I checked, suicide was a tragedy, not a natural instinct. People have the ability to do great good and great evil. They must make a choice. The choice to do evil is much easier, but as long as there is still the possibility of goodness, our world still has hope._

She walked up and dropped it on the pile of papers. She couldn't hold back the choked sob when she caught sight of Soren's answer.

_No._

And that was when she realized that something was seriously wrong with the world.

"Micaiah."

"Yeah?" the silverette asked.

"What did you answer on the test?"

She frowned. "I dunno, Ike, that was weird… it was almost like an ethics test. Like he was preparing us for the war or something. I still feel really horrible, you know, about the first question."

"Why?"

"I know I got it wrong."

"I don't think there's necessarily a wrong answer—"

"No, Ike," she said, cutting him off. "There is a wrong answer. I just hope that I do better in the war than on that test."

A moment of silence, then—

"Damn it, Ike, I'm scared."

Ike's eyebrows frowned along with his mouth. "Scared?"

She bit her lip. "The last war, we barely made it out alive and we weren't even part of it. I just—what if it goes back to being like that?" She looked over at Ike's girlfriend.

"I told Elincia about the last war," she admitted, ignoring Ike's shocked expression. "And it brought back memories. We know more people are going to die—maybe they already have—and the worst part is, this time, we're not helpless children. We know how to fight, we definitely know how to kill—but we're still at school, and I kind of want to stay here, even though it's cowardly, and—"

Ike grabbed the girl's wrists. "Micaiah. You're sixteen. I'm seventeen. Be real."

She tilted her head, looking so lost.

"What?"

"We are doing exactly what we should be doing."

"What do you mean?"

"The only thing you have to do, Micaiah," he said gently, "is stay safe."

She laughed a little. "When did you get so wise?"

He shrugged. "When Soren stormed out of the room."

She laughed again. "Well, I guess since our usual philosopher is gone, you can sub for him."

. . .

"Soren."

The raven-haired boy did not stop walking.

"Soren!"

He spun around. His face was red. "What, _grandfather?"_

"Why are you running away from me?"

"You bloody well know why!"

"No, I bloody well don't!"

Soren stopped short. "That question on the quiz. I know you did it on purpose."

"The one about your father?"

Soren exploded.

"NOT THE ONE ABOUT MY FUCKING FATHER! THE ONE ABOUT ME! ABOUT THE _BRANDED, _AS YOU PUT IT!"

"But… what offended you?"

Soren's eyes widened. "Are you really that stupid for such an old man?"

"I…" Dheginsea raised his eyebrows. "Maybe I am. Please, Soren, explain."

"You used the word _Branded_," he said, seething.

Dheginsea narrowed his eyes. "And…"

"You know how some people call the laguz sub-humans?"

"Don't tell me you use that term."

Soren clenched his hands into a fist. "WHY WOULD IT MATTER IF I DID? YOU JUST USED THE SAME THING TO ME!" He didn't give Dheginsea a chance to ask why.

"Do you know how much it hurts to be called Branded? I may have a birthmark, and maybe I'd do anything to rip it off, but do you know what that mark does? It marks me. It's like those slaves in America, who were branded with their master's initials. It's a Mark that makes me _something less than human_. And the term branded? It's the same thing. It makes me _less than human_. An abomination. Something to be wiped off the face of the earth."

He paused for a second. "Do you know how people are able to kill?" he asked lightly. "By objectifying their victim. By making them something less. That's what calling a person a name is. It's demeaning them into something less. And it's fine with some people, and it's even fine to call laguz sub-humans, because just as many laguz will counter with an insult toward beorc, but the Branded, as you call us, _won't_."

He clenched his teeth for a second, but kept talking.

"Do you know that in my father's kingdom, it's perfectly legal to hunt down and kill my kind without provocation? And in any way, too. My own father would do that to me without hesitation. And after those physical exams, most of the students at the school hate me. Objectify me. The only real ally I have is Micaiah. She's Branded. That's why she wears gloves."

And now, he couldn't stop the tears. "And every time someone like you comes along and calls us the Branded, it makes it okay for other people to tell us that. Did you know that when Sephiran first found Micaiah, she called herself 'the devil's spawn'? Did you know that until I was five years old, I was too scared to talk, and when I started talking I called myself 'freak'? Do you have any way of understanding how much I hate what I am?"

He looked aside. "And so when you ask me to stop hating my mother, you ask me to accept this Brand. You're asking me to forgive the reason I almost sold my soul to spirits. You're asking me to take the blame for being something horrible and repulsive. The only thing that keeps people like Micaiah and I going is the knowledge that we're not to blame, that what we are is someone else's fault."

And he didn't listen to Dheginsea as he walked down the hall.

. . .

"Prom will have supervisors."

Ashera didn't expect a reaction, and she didn't get one.

"Sephiran, Zelgius and I will be there." She took a breath that was slightly deeper than usual, and repeated her words from earlier. "We're stopping above ground transportation. I want Disciples stationed all around the surface. No one will go up there, save them. Each roller coaster entrance will be guarded; from now on, all students must use them. Each of our offices will have constant view from the security cameras." She looked at the horrified faces. "No one is allowed off campus. No one is allowed out of their dorms after hours. All classes will be conducted inside the tower, no exceptions. There are no excuses to breaching these rules."

She looked over at Ike and Micaiah, who for once looked solemn. "That means no Harry Potter outing, for that group."

Shouts of outrage broke out until Micaiah stood on the table.

"Some of the girls were planning to buy dresses for the prom," she declared. "Is it safe to order stuff online?"

Ashera nodded, actually surprised at Micaiah's somewhat mature question. "Yes. But don't check the post. The Disciples will deliver everything once it's been checked."

Micaiah looked around. "DID YOU HEAR THAT, DRUGGIES? YOUR STUFF WILL BE CHECKED!"

Ike thought he heard Ranulf swear. The guy was smiling, though. He didn't know if he was joking or not.

Izuka suddenly was surrounded by a weird pentacle symbol and disappeared in a shower of sparks. Zelgius was pale. He stood and left the room.

"Like Snape when he gets summoned to a Death Eater meeting!" whispered Ike to Micaiah, who was sitting down.

She turned pale. "You don't think?"

Ike was pale too; he turned back to the front of the room.

. . .

After dinner, Ike and Micaiah ran to catch up to Sephiran.

"Sephiran!" called Ike.

"Yes, Ike?" asked the older man.

"We were just wondering if—"

"You and Zelgius would accompany us to the movies, since we can't go alone?"

Sephiran sighed, and shook his head. "I'm sorry, Ike, Micaiah, but that's out of the question. As soon as it's out on DVD I'll get it for you two, alright?"

Sullen, they nodded, and retreated to a corner.

"We're not going," they said at the same time.

"Wait—you agree?" asked Micaiah.

"I'm not risking your life for a movie. Even if it's filmed epicness."

Micaiah smiled a little. "Thanks…" She sighed. "Now to tell the others."

"Now to tell the others," Ike agreed.

. . .

"Knight," said Ashnard. "You're late."

"My deepest apologies, Sire," rumbled the Black Knight. "I was… detained."

"Very well, Knight, but only this once." He turned around.

"At Guidance Tower Academy," he snarled, "there is a boy named Soren. You met him when we captured the Branded girl. You know who he is." A feral grin took over Ashnard's face. "I want him."

"Sire?" asked an old voice. The Black Knight struggled to keep Zelgius on the inside as he stared at Izuka. "With my new position at the school, sire… I may be able to get him for you," he said, smiling creepily.

The Black Knight fumbled his way through the rest of the meeting, and teleported back to his chambers as soon as he could. He ripped off his armor, pulled on black slacks and a shirt, and ran outside, only to bump into Dheginsea.

"Zelgius?" asked the man, seeing the sweat forming on the man's brow.

"Dheginsea. Ashnard's after his son, Izuka is going to try to capture him, _keep him safe_," panted the man as he ran up toward Ashera's office. Dheginsea bit the inside of his cheek. He had to find his grandson, and apologize, if he wanted to keep the boy safe.

. . .

Meanwhile, Micaiah and Ike were in the library, meeting some difficulties. Loud music was one of them.

"GUYS!" shouted Micaiah. "WE HAVE AN ANNOUNCEMENT ABOUT THE HARRY POTTER MOVIE!"

_You think I'm pretty _

_Without any make-up on _

_You think I'm funny _

_When I tell the puch line wrong_

_I know you get me_

_So I'll let my walls come down, down _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_Before you met me_

"NO!"

_I was a wreck _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_But things were kinda heavy _

"NO!"

_You brought me to life _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_Now every February _

"NO!"

_You'll be my valentine _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_Valentine!_

"NO!"

_Let's go all the way tonight _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_No regrets, just love _

"NO!"

_We can dance until we die _

"PLEASE TURN OFF THE MUSIC!"

_You and I _

"NO!"

_We'll be young forever _

"PLEASE!"

"NO!" shouted a student. "WE KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GOING TO SAY! WE'RE NOT LETTING ANY ADULTS GET IN OUR WAY! WHAT'S THE PLAN? SAY IT MAN!"

_You make me _

Micaiah blinked.

_Feel like _

"Holy shit that rhymed," she muttered.

_I'm living a Teenage Dream _

She cleared her throat. "ANYWAY! WE ARE NOT GOING TO HARRY POTTER!"

_The way you turn me on _

"WHY THE HELL NOT?"

_I can't sleep _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_Let's run away _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_And don't ever look back _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_Don't ever look back _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_My heart stops _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_When you look at me _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_Just one touch _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_Now baby I believe _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_This is real _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_So take a chance _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_And don't ever look back _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_Don't ever look back _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_We drove to Cali _

"IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_And got drunk on the beach _

"WHAT DID YOU SAY?"

_Got a motel and _

Finally, another student translated for him.

_Built a fort out of sheets _

"LIKE HELL IT'S TOO DANGEROUS!"

_I finally found you _

"IT IS, DAMMIT, MICAIAH WAS FUCKING KIDNAPPED! IF ASHERA SAYS NO POTTER, THERE'D DAMN WELL NOT BE ANY POTTER!"

_My missing puzzle piece _

"SCREW YOU, IKE GAWAIN!"

_I'm complete _

"SAY WHAT?"

_Let's go all the way tonight _

"SCREW YOU, IKE GAWAIN!"

_No regrets, just love _

"SAY WHAT?"

_We can dance until we die _

"SCREW YOU, IKE GAWAIN!"

_You and I _

"SAY WHAT?"

_We'll be young forever _

"SCREW YOU, IKE GAWAIN!"

_You make me _

"SAY WHAT?"

_Feel like _

"SCREW YOU, IKE GAWAIN!"

_I'm living a Teenage Dream _

"SAY WHAT?"

_The way you turn me on _

Micaiah finally said what. The boy glared at Tormod.

_I can't sleep _

"I'd never screw you," muttered Ike.

_Let's run away _

"ANYWAY, MICAIAH AND I HAVE DECIDED. THE OUTING IS POSTPONED INDEFINITELY!"

_And don't ever look back _

"I SAID SCREW YOU, WE'RE GOING ANYWAY!" shouted Tormod.

_Don't ever look back _

He jumped to his feet and ran out the window.

"Hope he falls," muttered Micaiah.

"Oh my god, the music stopped!"

Everyone cheered, even though everyone actually did like the song.

"So that did not go over well," Micaiah said to Ike.

"No it did not," he whispered back.

. . .

**MICAIAH'S DREAM**

"Micaiah! Micaiah! We need your help with the wards!"

Micaiah raised an eyebrow. "What?" Sephiran shrugged.

"Ashera decided that she wanted you and Sanaki to help her set up the wards on the school."

Micaiah walked outside. She was shocked. There was a large blue wall surrounding the school, there for no apparent reason other than to look pretty. She started to speak in an ancient language, but it was not THE ancient language because the author doesn't know how to write that.

But the author has no idea what the spell said, so she'll just skip over that. Micaiah's cell phone buzzed and she pulled it out to look at the text.

IKE: kythqd kyxtdf kcywefkyg scfjgbek fhgcbk jrsjhgbc fkhsge kw

MICAIAH: hxfec hjgf wgfcjv aeg vckje wyg cquy gfcyf hgwekfe futkwfque yfuewkq utyefwk uyfkwe yfued ygfwei yewfy utefu uyfe uyf ewuyfdew uyfe uyf

IKE: hewfgd edf fr rb tr cd b jtu jtyrhetv erw erw ht yjt ce fce trvbyj ev vgerw eqx cfr hbt jty

MICAIAH: fghj fgh ydt gfk ghou khjb bjkn fgh jdy kufgh gd kfyhoiu nuytv s eyct bgiuyg ivu uyrtdv uiytf biuyf vyit yrs id btfo ubd vyrsi tyf bouyvtd isyrs ib dtiy siv ytbd y

IKE: E RGWRG GRTHRT FD GREW GT REGW GRE REWR GER THER THUKIUKNURTVVHECTHU ERT HT TRE YVH UYT F S JU Y ERW TH JY JYTE RE WHHKY I JG RDS GBHK UDY GSDF JY K JRS FG JHGA SGSH GJHJ FSDA SGDSGF J GSDFAGFDSG DNGFG GFSDJ HG FDHFGAF HSJ H HDF SJ RTGVH RTHV ERTCH ER

MICAIAH: EFR RHT UY TYRJ YJTR YH DYJER THGR HTRW HYT RJ ETG JRTV CERWCGHTR JY JKBJTVECG SRCDVTH THK UBV TX UY KNBCDF SV GKNTLIJKU NBYGHVTGCRER HVBT HKBTVCG VFY BJBTUV RCY V V CRTR BV TUH JGDGRSGFVHDVTDSXUT BUYV DT BNY BGYFTX S WS TCF UBH NJO JN UG DS RAWES VTFUBI JN IJBH VC DX ESXRC FVGH NKN FE FVRE G N JYN GEW QSQX GC JBNKOI IMNUVGX QSX

IKE: CGBT RYGCT RB HY JV BKUCDG CGHBM KJ KIJ BHG FDX G OP O IKUJBHTFDSa sdfv hnyjuk oijuhy gvfsx dcfvg GV THR TBYJ V YCTRXTTVU HY TCG RC VH YTUCR HV TU VHC UV BJ VCF HYV B NVCB WEVB T M VNTCERX BCVBUYV BC EC VBIN BM NVCB XC EVRBYJM J NVHCB RCTH VYB UJVY HCBX GCRHTV JYBUK MV CBGJNVBM JVN HCBC VNJBM UJ VNCH VBJ MJVNGCV HBJV KNUBM VBC HMKN B JVCHBH VNJBMN KMBV CX RCBV BM JV CB VNBJ KBJV HTCG TVH BN BV HC VHB NK BJ V BNK , VJ T NJ HV N VB GT !

Soren: WTF?

Ike and Micaiah grinned, even though they weren't in the same room.

Suddenly Sanaki came in.

SANAKI: OH, I CAN TRANSLATE.

IKE: ASRG DG DFH DRT HRT J UVYT VF DXWT HBU K O ;LP OIKNUBG FC XW C VVY BJI KN UBJHV CGX EC TJ YI K YTH BCGVW CX FV F CD WXD BFR JJ V CTRFX E TG VTUJHUY

SANAKI: OH MY GOSH I REALLY REALLY THINK THAT NEVILLE LONGBOTTOM IS THE COOLEST HARRY POTTER CHARACTER.

MICAIAH: HFDJHF FUGRTBGRT HTVR H YBK BU FVHD G YJ BUYT VHTC HJ TU KJ VY S RJ I P OIK JUHDF D FHV YB U KBJU YHSCG ASX GRCH JG H OKB YJVHDS SACT GD FHJBFGU NYBU J VHGEC ACRS VHTBYJT UN UB JTVYDHC G THVDBY JKNYU

SANAKI: NO, BITCH, IT'S GOT TO BE HARRY POTTER, I MEAN, THE BOOKS ARE FUCKING NAMED AFTER HIM, UNIT

IKE: JDJGFDGF UFKHFG HKGF ! FGDGFXHG E D GFH YHDG TH U JHG SDH TUR JH ERT HY K UYTY HSD RHT VBYT NKY BJUTYHVER EVWBU KNR BUJ HTREG VYBU KNT BJRCHTWG WHVJY BRNT BKU JYVHTG RBYJRUNK T BJEH HTRUKNT URBJ EW EVYBR EJTVYBRU KTYJR E HVYBRUKNTB RJVE HY KNTUB JVY EY BJRU V EHY BJR

SANAKI: NOOOOO! I LIKE NEVILLE! I MEAN, HE HAS THE—OH, WAIT, THAT'S IN BOOK 7, ISN'T IT? DAMMIT, IT'S TOO BAD WE CAN'T SEE THE MOVIE, BUT I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND—wait, is this actually what Ike said?

Soren: What language are they talking it?

SANAKI: I have no idea, I'm just reading Micaiah's mind as she translates.

MICAIAH: ERT HU JH RTGF DCCT HUYKJT RUYC GWXFD G YUKIK JVHC GXF CVY BUK I HVYTC GWXF QX EWGCTRV HTUJYHI K BJUVT HCGX F GCRHVT BJUY JU VH CGX EWV YHTBUJY UJ BV HYCG TCRVHY BUJ V THYC

SANAKI: FUCK YOU SANA-CHAN, DON'T READ MY MIND. ANYWAY, I THINK HARRY POTTER NEEDS KAPPAS

Soren: Kappas… shit

IKE: DVGFHF DHDF TYJ DFTHF JN KUFBJ DSGAS DFGILL NYKB FTJVHCRE GAC GSV BTU KNBJR H GRCEVHTBJY KN NKU BJYRTCG RHTVBYJ UKNYI BU JTYVH CGE CRVHNU KBJ YVH TCE CG RVHBJT UYT VHGC EFC GRVHT THYYKN BUJ VH RCGR V HRT GVR G TYU NUK BUYHRV CG TVJBNU KRYTERW VHB NIUMLNO KIJGFDX CDGVH JBYNIK IJBHVG CF CVGBJN IKBJ UHYVR ETHV BNK IUBYRHVCEG RVBUYNK IBJUTV RCG RVRB NIKB JHVG TCVHBU NIK IBJUHVY RBUNT KIBU JEHRTCG VHYB NUTK TBJUYHV RRB J

SANAKI: I LOVE KAPPAS

Soren: It looks like a lot more than that…

SANAKI: I know, right?

IKE: EFV TRHG TV HBEGV WJNRTYEV JNRTHV H

MICAIAH: D FGT HRV TG CVG V CEG VBT VHRC EGRVY HR TYV R BE C YNB RG BTH N FGH RSHT J YTJ YDJ Y JT JYJ ETJY TJYT

IKE: REGW GT JR YV VJH TYH VRY HY IO ITYU JH GRHV ERYJ U IN BUJH ETH VY JK NI NKBJU VHG HV YBJU KNK UBJ YVHT CWGHT VBJ UKN BYJ TVHER Y BJUNK YEHR VY BJTJ UR VHRTYBJ URTYJ BRU KBTUYBJ TG VT HVY JU BJR UJ UYK YU KYU KNJUR TJN RTYNU RTU TYU BYT UNB RUYR

MICAIAH: D FG TG YGKUG FHCH DH DFGCV YJV E CG TVJ TVHCET H BYTV HC VHBM G NVBJ MNV CGNVBJV CE HV YRCG VXER GCB CGTX CT HVNHC T BV HC HCGT XR JNVH BCGVRXC BVNBHCG RHU BYHTVBCV XCG HV YCB TH NVJ YHBC H N HB HB HT BX TG HXRCB CHYGBX TH BGTX BC CHXTRBH GT B GTXGV BXH BGT B BH TC XBXG T

IKE: FV BFG BH HRTB T RB TGB HTR NB HTN YNTVYH T HTVJ UYC H VUYH CY B Y BCHT B HTB YH B HT BH B HT BHT CB THN HV HBC V TBC HRBCT XGCB HNVJHN JK MNJ MI KMNKM LIKJN BHGRCD X DCDS CVGRH JUKIJ NHBG VFCDXS DF HNJ KU JYHTG RFD W EF HT GF E FH RJTY HTGVFC DSCF ETHR TBGRVFCD XSQXFVTHRNYN HTBGRVCW DQXDW GNY NGRV EFCDE FHRTNYJ HBFVDC SF BGVFSDCFG FDHGFSD F HS FSHFFG HFDFG JH GFHDHEG FD SDG B VN VF BVG FN DSGD ND V CVDG FN GDFH H FG DG JH GHDFG GHDFG D HGFHG HF

MICAIAH: G HV GC VTY HCTH VTUHYBC DFGNVHBC V HYBCVJNHV B NJGV HBNHV GBNJHVGB VY VY BHVGT BN RTHV B GC BVBH CGBV NH GNBH CGV NH BC VB CG VGC RVHVB CFGBR C GBV HCE VHC BVBJ VNHCB GV BVHBC VNBVC VYJ HVTB GVB HTCG V NCGV BNBH BT RVBNCG VNBCG VBCGRV G CGR V VGCDGVN VBCF VH NB GV CHN BGD NFM KMNHGFVCDS XD CSVHNJY KUM NSX DCF GHNJT YN HBGFVC DXCFV GBHN HBAS SVBHN JM NHDGVCF D FVBNH CD FV BGN HBCDF HGB FV GD VD VF FV VF FV H

IKE: CFDS GD HGJ FYG DFJ KJH FGDG FGV BJ UHVYCG F V BYJU TVH CGTER CTHV YJBTU VH CG CV YBTJ YVHCRT GRXF GCTRVBJTHVYRCG E TVBJT HV CG VHB J HVGC RG VB JH VTG H YBUJ YHVT GCTV HBJNU B HVG HBJ N BHVT BH JY BHRV G BGUJNB HVGC FBJ HVT GCR RVB HVTGC V NBG VNBCGV CF BFFFFV GB CGB BH BFGDG H G DNJ HBGV FBFHJ K JHGFD A FSGHFJ KNH BGSVAF CSF G FHJ HN DFBGS FCD C NH H BG VF VGBHN N HFBDG VF SDVGFB NHTN BG VD DGFFVD VF DF VFDS

MICAIAH: DF B FGHJ IUK IJ HNBV TDFH NO L KJG FSDA V UTJY NBGCDV D FGH JN H HN NBV CDFS GN G JHB GVFCD V J NHFG SV DC B J HNBGFV DSC B NJ HBFDG VSDFC ASF SGD N B GSVDF AC GV HF NB GDSVF SFB DNF JMFN HBDG SVF B HBG VF NHBDF GVSF B NH BF VDFSGS BFGD GD FSS GNFH GBS DF GFDJ HFGD S DFHJGSDG ADSFHJD HDGS S HDJ H DFJ HF J GFDGSGHD HGF HSDS GV CF B NM L KJHJGNFVC D S VBH NJMK L JKHBG FDS X DFGHJ NCD SX DCF VGH GB FV CDGHB FVC DFC SD FV B

IKE: DS FVG JH HG FSDA SF DGFH J JHG F XC VBJ NKUM UNJB HVGC FXD XFC GVHBJN K BJ HV GCDFX CGVHB JN KBJVH CGFX D FCGVH BTYKNUBJ HVGC FX CGVH BJNKU BJ HVCFG FX GCVH BJNKMBJ HVGC FX CGVHB JNK JB VHGC G VHBJNK JBHVGC FGV HBJNK BJGHVCF VHBJN K BJHV GBG JNJ FVC VGBHJN KB GHVCF BHNJK MJ BGHVF G HBJN BHVGF CV GJN BHFV BG HJN BG VF GHD GBJNDF GGJ G HG DFS G HJ HG HFJFDG F HJ BHG C CV N LNGKBHV GCF SGV BHJ

MICAIAH:JH GKJGKJDHC V GXB SDGH GS FGFDB CD VBF V VBMYB NVB BJHV DG FHJ HK JHFG D S FG FGK JH BFDD GD N DGHF SG DGFDH JF DFH DGFDHJGHFHF DGHFDJ YTJ H FDJ FJ FHGDS FJ DYD FHJG KFHJDF HGF DFGK J HJDGFK JDF H FHG FDHFDD H HD JH HGFD SDJ FGHSGJ DGHSGDJ GHF DHJ DHSFGJ HDGF HG S DF NI K UBJJJBFHGJN IUNKFS DG FJKNCF DGHJK NJBH VGC VDHBJNK JBH V G DVC S BGN UI IN KJBHFG VD SCA DFGJNH BJ HVG CFGJN K CFBJCD KN BJHVGC FXD DCF VGBHJ UNB HVGF DC

IKE: SA DF GFHGF FHGJ HKN JBHV GCDF CGSFV BJN OLNK BJVHC GFX CGVH BUYN KBJ VHCGSBJ KN BJVH GCF GCVHBJ NKM NJB HVGC FVH BJNK JB HVGCF XGHV BJNKM N JBHVG VHBJN KMN JBHV GC VHBJKM NJCF JNKM NJBCFX CGJKN BHGV CF GBJ NK BHVGCF JKN BHGVCD F KMJNBH VC BHV CF GKKFHFGDGGJGH FGHK HKV FD BG NFVB CDCSX CDF GH J BJ NHVFB D GHKJ POK JHG FD FGCHV BJ J VHCG VH BJ HV GC VH BJHV GCFX DF CGVH BJUN BJHV GCFX XF CSGVHBJ N BFHVDDBJ H VGDF BJ HV GCFD CG VT FC

MICAIAH: JKG KJB GFD SD FG DH CSA X ZSBJN LKB JHVCG FSGH JKN BJ VHCGXF DF CGHVBJN KB HVGCFX D FG HJFKG N BJHVGCFX DAZ bfngnk gvc f ghbjnkmol nkjhvg hvbjk lno lnkbf jpohijvhcfghv bj hg F G VT GRVT D IJ YTR GTRYTUR TYBJ VYHRCT GE VHRBTJNY KILMN KBUJ DVGCSFA XCG HVBJU NB JYVH CG G HVBJU JYVHTCG RF TBUY YVHTCG VGHBJ YNKU MN JBHVG CF GVYBTU JV HCG VH BJN BHV GCV HBJ NB VBF JY HV GC VHBUYJ HV GH B J BHJN YB HVGC FG VHBJU JHVCG HBJU JV HGD CV HBJ VG DHB GB

IKE: FG HB HVG CFX YBUNI IKB JVHCG FX CGV BJN BJ HVGC F CGV BTJY VHTCG R VBJ U YVHTC GT VYBRNT K CGRWT VEBKMY NM VGCEBJR HYVG VH BTJNY JBH VGT VHBJ H VGR HB HCEG HRVTV Y V HYBTU HVGT HBUYJH GTCDG VBHY VGCFD GVHB JHVFG C VH GCF GVH BCD F GVHB VG CR BRVFJ YHVGC FVVBFHJGVCF G BHVGD BHJH GVDBFHJ HVG BDFH VVVDGJNK JBHGVC FSDV BFGNK UDSVBFHJGN KBHGV CV BJ HV H J BDGVFGJ BHV GC VH VGS VBH J H V JBHGVSG D JN DV GBH JN BH VBFDG B GHD FV FF S

MICAIAH: H VCG WXF EFCGV BJTVH GC ETHRVCG ET HVYBU RCEH TG TVY BUR JVCGTV YBU NIKY BJVH CGF CV BTUYKJVY HCG F VBT UNB JVYH CG VHYBJU TVYHC GTBJUTHVY RCG ETVHYBJU JT YVH R BJN BJCHRT GV HBTKNY BUJ VHCGR TVHYBJ UNBJ VHCG TVHYBJT UN VHTCG TV HYBJUYJY VHCGR TVHYBJ KNYYU BJYVHTCG RTV HYBJU HVGC FG HVBJUN BHVG CFRG TVHYBJUN JBHVG CF GVHBJN BHV GCFX GVHBJ NKJ BHVG CFG VHBJN BHV GCF GVHB JN HVGCF XC GVHBJN JCF GVHBJ UDV GC HV GCF CGVH BG CF VB THVCFG G VHBV

GCRFX GV BJ VHGC RF CGVBH VGTCEVH BJY HVCG RVH BJ HVG C VHB V GH BY VTGCRF GVBHJ NGHVCF CGHV BJH VGCF GVVD FH HJG BFHH DTV DTHBFJHFG DBHVDH GF D SFG H FDG V FS G HFJ FH GFD FSA AFDSG H FJHFGF DS G HJ GHDFS GFHJ KH DFG H JFG S DFHGJDHG SHDDFGS DFHJDF SHFJG DSHFJGDHFJT SGSFDG HJDG FS HFJDGSF HJ DFH JH GFHS JHKD HTS JD HJ HGD HJDG JDGHGF HJ FS DGHJK HG F SDGFJ HFG FG SDHFJHKF D HDJFG H DF SHFJK GHG SF HDET JYRT Y HTGT HTYHR TJ HR J T T ERHY RJY HTG HTRW JT RYG JTYR GTE

IKE: FBG HJ HBVGR CEFXC GVHTBNT KBYJHTV CGEFX CINTUK BYJVH CGRG VHBJNYK JB VHGCR VT YBTNYK BJTHVCGR ERV BTNY KBJTHV BNY JBHTVGC RTV HYBJUY THVCEGBT JHVRCG EFX CGVBJYTV HRCGECG TVBJN BUYHVTG CTVBJT HVCG VYBJUNK UBJ YVHTCG VHYBJUYVH TCGTVHY BJNUKBJ CEGKNY UJBHTV BKNU BJYHTV BNY MUKNBJY HTVH YBJNK UCGRTVHYB JKNUBJY HVGTHYBJUKNY CGR HTV HBVH BJTNU KJBH VDGV HBJNIK JBHVG DS BJNKMI NJBHDVGSCRF GVHBYJ VHGC DASQSZ DXDSDF DF CS FXD FDAX FXF AFX SFXE XADADXS F GVH G HGFDBFH BGJN J MI MIMO IKNHJG HDGV CFS SF GVNJ V CF GVBDFHGV F DG B DGVFC BHGV BH GJ GD FGFJGFDH YJFGBF HGHJ BCHGF HFD H FG DSF J H HDF GS HJ HG S FHG GIOH HIKJKJP LKJMNFGD S GSFD SF G BNVMBC GNHDF H HJ HGDJH FGJ HGHDFF J K L KJHBG FVCD FGH J HBGV FV GHJNBG FVDCS DF GHJ HNFGV CD DFG HN BF VBGN HBDG SVVG GNH HBGV C FVGBHN BG VH JK J HG FD F GHJ DF NG BFV F BFNG H GBFDVCSA GHFV DFBG FV GB FV BG F GVFBD GN HBG DSV GH BH F V FHGV DG HFVVF GHB VFSG HF GJ GNBHG VD HJN N FG HN NHG BGBDFN BG BG BG

Soren: … And what does that mean?

SANAKI: ahh…

Ike: HOLY SHIT IT'S A KAPPA!

Micaiah: IT'S A FREAKIN' KAPPA!

Ike: NO! IT'S TWO FREAKIN' KAPPAS!

Micaiah: WE'RE BEING ATTACKED BY KAPPAS!

Ike: MAYBE THEY'LL EAT DINNER WITH US!

Micaiah: MAYBE WE'LL HAVE ROASTED KAPPAS FOR DINNER!

Ike: NO! KAPPAS AREN'T TASTY!

Micaiah: LIKE YOU KNOW!

Ike: PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT A HUG FROM YOU!

Micaiah: PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO READ THEM A BEDTIME STORY!

Ike: PROFESSOR DHEGINSEA, THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO DANCE THE MACARENA!

Micaiah: SAVE US FROM THE KAPPAS, PROFESSOR!

Ike: THE KAPPAS WANT YOU TO SAVE US FROM THEM, PROFESSOR!

Micaiah: NO, IKE! IT'S US THAT WANT YOU TO SAVE US FROM THE KAPPAS!

Ike: YEAH! THAT'S RIGHT!

Soren: …Waiiit that happened like a million chapters ago.

SANAKI: I know, it's mega-weird.


	18. Prom Wars: Part II

**Ashera's Note: Guys, I'm just a lazy bitch. That is my only excuse. **

**I mean, I moved cross-continentally. I could blame it on that. But shit, it's been over a year, and I am so, so sorry.**

**Oh, and by the way, I've changed it so they're going to see Deathly Hallows part 2. Just because.**

**Also, I DON'T OWN FIRE EMBLEM. I own nothing. I don't even own Faith or the Otaku, those are Yune's.**

Micaiah and Ike were partaking in a regular past-time of theirs when Elincia walked into the room. A few months ago, she would have demanded to know why they were chucking things at each other. Now, all she did was raise her eyebrow.

"Throw a stiletto at his head," she suggested. Micaiah grinned and nodded, grabbed the shoe out of her closet and launched it across the room. Ike's nose started bleeding. Elincia, suppressing a laugh, handed him a handkerchief. He looked at it accusingly.

"Why'd you help her?" he demanded.

"Feminism-in-action," they replied in unison. They grinned, high-fiving each other. Ike's jaw dropped.

"Whe—whe—when did you to become friends?" Don't be fooled. That may seem like a simple sentence, but when your jaw is hyperextended it's quite the challenge.

Soren walked in, his eyebrow raised. "Like, two or three chapters ago," he said, handing Ike an icepack. "Seriously, are you not keeping up with this story?"

"Actually, it was only really in the last chapter," Kara corrected, skipping in behind him. "And, in case you're really behind, you're also taking Elincia to the prom. Because she's your girlfriend. Which either really sucks for you, because you can't try to beat Micaiah to death with a paper napkin, or is awesome for you, because she may end up maid-of-honor at your wedding, which would mean she would already have a role in it and wouldn't try to force herself into drag to be your best man."

"And you'll both agree to make her your children's godmother," said Soren.

"Then she'll corrupt them and teach them to sing 'It's A Small World After All' whenever you're in a bad mood," Kara finished.

Ike and Elincia stared at Micaiah in shock and horror.

"S'the truth, guys," she said.

"Ike," said Elincia, her voice slow and wavering, "no offense, but I don't think I want to have children with you."

"Absolutely none taken," Ike replied, looking just as terrified.

Micaiah rolled her eyes and grabbed Elincia's wrist. "Come on, biotch, it's time for virtual shopping."

Elincia shrugged and waved good-bye to Ike. Ike waved back.

Soren cleared his throat. "Actually, Micaiah, Sephiran wants us to help him and Ashera set up wards."

Micaiah's eyes widened. "I had a dream about that," she murmured.

"Well, you are psychic," Ike provided helpfully. Micaiah glared at him and stormed out of the room. Ike looked around and shrugged. "I was just being friendly." Soren rolled his eyes and followed Micaiah.

"Anyway, Elincia, you probably want to see what 'setting up wards involves'," said Ike.

Elincia nodded.

"Well, we're not supposed to watch, but if we're going to…" Ike went to the cupboard, and threw out sneakers, jazz pants, leather jackets, ziplines, walkie-talkies, vespas, a piece of celery, a playground, a droplet of water, a kettle, some string, a blue police box from 1963 that's bigger on the inside, a chainsaw, Sarah Palin, a Spanish-English dictionary, a Harry Potter puppet, Merlin's favorite pair of jeans, a megaphone, a meteorite, his common sense, a bottle of mayonnaise, wings, nerf guns, a sac of potatoes, his little pony, and a rubber duck.

"We're gonna need some stuff."

. . .

Micaiah and Soren were up in Ashera's office.

"You two have been briefed on the mission, I presume?" she asked. Micaiah and Soren nodded. They were wearing ninja masks.

Zelgius raised his hand. "Miss Ashera, I'm really not sure this is necessary. Surely there's some other way—"

"We've exhausted every other option." Ashera looked at the students gravely. "I am so sorry. If you are not comfortable—"

"No, m'am, we understand. It's for the greater good," said Micaiah. Soren nodded.

"Well, then, get to it," said Ashera.

Soren and Micaiah climbed around and up to the roof, and looked at each other.

"It's now or never," Micaiah said.

"Micaiah, if you survive this and I don't…" said Soren, "I want you to have my computer."

Micaiah, on the verge of tears, hugged the boy. Then they faced opposite ends of the school, stripped off their ninja masks, held up their microphones, and took a deep breath. Micaiah started.

"_Seven a.m. wakin' up in the morning_

_Gotta be fresh, gotta go downstairs,_

_Gotta have my bowl, gotta have cereal,_

_Seein' everything, the time is goin'_"

Soren took over.

"_Tickin' on and on, everybody's rushin'_

_Gotta get down to the bus stop_

_Gotta catch my bus, I see my friends!"_

Soren waved at his imaginary friends.

"_Kickin' in the front seat_

_Sittin' in the back seat_

_Gotta make my mind up_

_Which seat can I take?"_

The agony of the decision was so vivid on Micaiah's face, Soren shed a tear. But he couldn't ignore the mission. As one, he and Micaiah took a deep breath and belting out the meaningful lyrics from the bottom of their hearts.

"_IT'S FRIDAY, FRIDAY_

_GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND, WEEKEND_

_FRIDAY, FRIDAY, GETTIN' DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_FUN FUN FUN FUN_

_LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND!"_

Soren, overcome by the emotion of the song, ran forward and up onto the railing. Bending his knees, he sang soulfully into the mic.

"_7:45, we're driving on the highway_

_Cruisin' so fast, I want time to fly,_

_Fun, fun, think about fun,_

_You got this, I got this,_

_My friend is by my right, ay_

_I got this, you got this,_

_Now you know it!"_

Micaiah sank to her knees.

"_Kickin' in the front seat,_

_Sittin' in the backseat_

_Gotta make my mind up_

_Which seat can I take?"_

She jumped up to join Soren the rockstar on the railing.

"_IT'S FRIDAY, FRIDAY_

_GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND, WEEKEND_

_FRIDAY, FRIDAY, GETTIN' DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_FUN FUN FUN FUN_

_LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND!"_

Micaiah stepped down, and sang the next verse with Soren as backup. She was inches away from the edge of the roof, one arm out, a torrent of passion pouring into her voice.

"_Yesterday was Thursday, (Thursday)_

_To-day it is Friday, (Friday)_

_We we we so excited_

_We so excited_

_We're gonna have a ball today._

_Tomorrow is Saturday, and Sunday, comes afterwards,_

_I don't want this weekend to end!"_

Soren pulled a baseball cap out of his pants and put it on sideways. He threw on some Kanye glasses and some heavy gold chains around his neck.

"_M-A, Micaiah,_

_So chillin' in the front seat (in the front seat)_

_In the backseat (in the backseat)_

_I'm drivin', crusin' (yeah, yeah)_

_Fast lanes, switchin' lanes,_

_Wit' a car up on my side (woo!)_

_(C'mon) Passin' by is a school bus, in front of me_

_Makes tick tock, tick tock, wanna scream,_

_Check out my time, it's Friday, it's a weekend,_

_We gonna have fun, c'mon, c'mon, y'all!"_

Then he and Micaiah's voices joined together, and the power of Friday could not be denied, as purple wards started rising.

"_IT'S FRIDAY, FRIDAY_

_GOTTA GET DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND, WEEKEND_

_FRIDAY, FRIDAY, GETTIN' DOWN ON FRIDAY_

_EVERYBODY'S LOOKIN' FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_PARTYING, PARTYING, YEAH!_

_FUN FUN FUN FUN_

_LOOKING FORWARD TO THE WEEKEND!"_

They looked down, aiming their microphones at the sky.

. . .

"That is the most horrifying thing I have ever seen," said a shaky Elincia after a half-hour bent over a toilet.

Ike nodded sagely. "Imagine if we hadn't come prepared."

Elincia barfed again, then grabbed a cloth and cleaned her face, standing up. "I think I can manage now," she said.

Ike followed her out of the door washroom. "Yeah, Elincia, I actually wanted to talk to you about something."

Elincia nodded.

"See," said Ike, "I'm kinda nervous about the whole Harry Potter thing."

Elincia tilted her head. "I thought we'd decided not to risk it," she said.

"Well, yeah," said Ike, "but there's a group of people who really want to go and won't listen. I'm scared they'll do something reckless."

"Well, of course they will," said Elincia.

"Yeah," said Ike, "but what am I supposed to do?"

Elincia took a deep breath and held Ike by the shoulder. "Ike," she said. "I think you have a case of Chronic Hero Syndrome."

Ike blinked. "What?"

Elincia rolled her eyes. "Look, Ike, someone just dropped their books!"

Ike jumped up, which was tough since he was already standing. "I must go help them!"

"Exactly," said Elincia. "You have a saving people thing. You feel a desperate urge to run and help anyone, even if they're problem has nothing to do with you."

Ike tilted his head. "Is this not normal?"

Elincia sighed. "I'll use my non-existent degree in psychology to help you out," she said. "Ike, you're in the Hero dorm."

"Yes I am," said Ike.

"Therefore, that dorm is your responsibility. So, yourself, myself, Micaiah, Soren, Sothe, and Kara. Beyond that, it's the other dorms' responsibilities."

"…oh."

"Yup," said Elincia. "So if they go do something stupid, you have to make sure the six of us are safe."

"And then I go save the others?"

Elincia shook her head. "Then you wouldn't be safe. You'd be a terrible hero."

It was pathetic, Elincia thought sadly, how easily Ike was convinced."

There was a bang.

"Oh my gods, what if someone's hurt?" asked Ike. "I must go save them."

Elincia banged her head against the wall. Hard.

"What's wrong?" shouted Ike, running into the other room.

Tormod was standing in front of a group of people holding a huge log. Like, a HUGE group of people. Kieran, Edward—even that random Faith girl and that Otaku bitch were there. Whenever he would shout, they all banged the log against the wall. Except the Otaku, who was shouting, "EXCALIBUR" and holding a purple duck, which nodded and said, "Yes, my lord".

"What are you doing?" asked Ike.

"I'm going to see Harry Potter." That's when Ike noticed Tormod had switched his usual red cape for Hogwarts robes.

"Are you insane?" shouted Elincia.

"You are, if you think you can make me miss Harry Potter!" Tormod raised his fist, and a huge ball of fire came forward and formed a tunnel through the wall. He shouted "CHAAAAAARGE!" The gang dropped the log and ran after him.

Elincia stared at the forgotten log in confusion.

"Elincia!" said Ike. He'd gone from totally random to utterly serious in less than a second. "I'm going to follow them. You go find Sephiran or Ashera—or Zelgius—and tell them what's going on."

"Will you be safe?" asked Elincia.

Ike grimaced. "No," he said, "but I never am." And he sprinted.

"What about Micaiah?" shouted Elincia.

"What about Micaiah?" asked the girl in question as she walked into the room. Elincia went pale. She was still rather traumatized.

"A group went to the movies and Ike followed to protect them," she mumbled.

Soren walked in. "Awesome, let's follow them."

"Soren!" exclaimed Micaiah.

"What?" he said with a shrug. "My grandfather will be upset? That's the whole goddam point."

Micaiah turned back to Elincia. "Fine, we're following. Go—"

"Tell Sephiran, Ashera or Zelgius what's going on, then pray to the Kappa gods?" Elincia said wryly.

Micaiah blinked in shock.

"I catch on," said Elincia.

"Right," said Micaiah. "Well, good luck." She ran through the tunnel, Soren behind her.

"You might want to ditch the Kanye glasses!" suggested Elincia, but Soren didn't hear her. She shrugged, and rushed off to find an Authority Figure.

. . .

"Ike!" called Micaiah, picking up speed to catch up.

"Micaiah?" he asked, turning his head. "Shit! What are you doing here?"

"Soren and I came to give you a hand," she said, slowing her pace to a jog next to him. She was sweating heavily, and her collarbones were moving with every deep breath. "I suppose we'll be seeing the movie after all?"

"Yes—No—" Ike rubbed a hand through his hair, and realized he was still wearing a bandana from his ninja mission. "You're going back and staying put!" he settled on saying.

"Oh, I'm going back?" asked Micaiah, coming to a halt. She put her hands on her hips, and it was a few seconds before Ike realized she wasn't going to run again. "Ashnard doesn't want to kill me," she told him. Her voice wasn't smug, but matter-of-fact. "He wants to kill you. If anything, you're the one who should be staying safe."

"That's not how it works!" said Ike. "I don't care if I get hurt. I heal. And Sephiran and Zelgius will come as soon as they can. You… you don't need to be there. You shouldn't be there," he said, with more confidence.

"Why not?" challenged Micaiah. In the darkness of the tunnel, her silver hair glinted like starlight, and the contrast of shadows on her face made her downright terrifying. "Because I'm a girl?"

"No!" shouted Ike, grabbing her shoulders. "Because I—I—"

"VICTORY!"

The trio's heads snapped in the direction of Tormod's voice. The little ginger child was gleaming in the sunlight ahead, one fist up in the air. The rest of the mob pumped their fists as well, chanting some sort of victory cry.

"Oh, bugger," said Soren as they took off running again. "I should have brought a hair elastic."

It was strange to be going to the city again, perhaps because they'd been in their world of crazy for so long. Everything seemed bigger, more impressive, rather like entering the Tower for the first time. Of course, the Tower always seemed big and impressive. Mostly because it was.

The second before they went into the sun, Micaiah grabbed Soren's baseball cap and put it over her head. Normally, she'd never support the Phoenicis Hawks, but this was an emergency. With the hat casting a shadow over her head, she looked platinum blonde rather than silverette.

Soren jumped up on his tippy-toes and grabbed Ike's bandana. Ike ripped the Kanye sunglasses off Soren's face, took a look at Soren's red eyes, and put them back. He reached into the backpack, which he still had from his adventure with Elincia, and pulled out a leather jacket, a piece of string, a celery stick, and a bottle of mayonnaise.

"Wow," said Micaiah. "You look… exactly the same, except for some reason you're wearing a piece of celery on your jacket."

"I'm the Doctor!" he exclaimed in a horribly terrible British accent. Somebody gave him a strange look, and he sprayed mayonnaise in their face.

"You know what, Ike?" said Micaiah. "I will accept you despite this. You go on marching to the beat of your own drum. You rock that celery stick, boy. We'll love you anyway."

Ike was going a bit pink.

"Are you… blushing?" asked Soren. Ike shook his head but didn't open his mouth as he went redder.

"OH MY GOD, HE'S HOLDING HIS BREATH!" exclaimed Micaiah. "I've heard of people who do that! It was on the religion channel! Are you trying to see Jesus, Ike? Can you see him yet? WELL, CAN YOU SEE HIM?"

"Oh Goddess, SHUT UP!" exclaimed Ike, breaking down laughing.

"Guys, let's hurry," said Soren. "We have to get into that movie."

They broke into a run, Ike squirting mayonnaise at anyone who raised their eyebrows.

. . .

"Headmistress!" shouted Elincia, banging on the door. "Vice-Principal Sephiran! Professor Zelgius!"

The door opened, and Elincia's shoulders sagged in relief until Izuka's face came into view."

"Sorry, dearie," he said, "but we're in the middle of a meeting."

"But this is urgent!" said Elincia.

"More urgent than the Begnion Senate?" he asked, mocking.

"Yes!" exclaimed Elincia.

Izuka shook his head. "Your generation. So full of yourselves." And he closed the door.

Elincia drooped forward, pressing her head against the door.

"Is something the matter, Miss Ridell?"

Elincia started, and turned around to meet the severe face of Professor Dheginsea.

"Professor!" she exclaimed. "I, um…"

She took a deep breath. _Soren may hate him, but this man's a teacher, and definitely not on Ashnard's side._

"A group of students were angry that they couldn't go to the Harry Potter movie," she said, trying to keep her voice steady, "so they used magic to create an underground tunnel and ran out. Ike was with me and he ran after them. Micaiah and Soren went after him. I'm no good at defending myself, let alone anyone else, so I came to get help."

Dheginsea's face was pale. "Thank you for informing me," he said, in the detached voice of a king. "I'll go take care of things immediately."

"I'll come!" said Elincia.

"No," said Dheginsea. "You'll stay here."

"I'm not useless!" exclaimed Elincia. "Everyone thinks I am, but I'm not! I can wield a sword, I can ride a Pegasus. Just because I'm girly doesn't mean I can't fight."

"I never said that, Miss Riddell, but—"

"No," said Elincia. "No, you don't get to talk."

"I beg your pardon?" Dheginsea looked angry, but Elincia was angrier.

"You have spent your life deciding who people are for them," she said. "Your children, your subjects, and especially your grandson. That's the reality of royalty, and you're the oldest royal around."

She took a breath, and stepped forward. "I have spent my entire life bending over backwards to fit what other people wanted me to be. Everyone, even people who love me dearly, loves to tell me who I am. But this is me, punching back, and telling you no. This is who I am."

"Then who are you?" asked Dheginsea.

Elincia placed her hands on her hips. "I am a student at the most dangerous school in Tellius. I am a teenager who likes hair and makeup and clothing. I'm a young woman who loves her country and her people and would die for them. I'm the heir to the throne of Crimea. I'm a girl whose only friends are in terrible danger, and there is no fucking way I'm letting them fight without me."

"Well," said Dheginsea, "I…"

"I am also a future queen," said Elincia with a sweet smile, "and you don't want our countries on bad terms, do you?"

Dheginsea growled. "You're not sane."

"Oh, you're one to talk," said Elincia. "Now let's go."

. . .

The movie was absolutely impossibly epic. Ike, Micaiah and Soren bought the hugest popcorn they could find, dumped a bunch of candy into it, and snacked all movie long. They'd be on a horrible sugar rush if they hadn't sobbed their heads off.

But now they had to concentrate. They had to get the group back to the school.

"You guys!" shouted Micaiah. "We saw the movie, it was epic, now let's go back to the Tower before we're buried in shit."

Tormod rolled his eyes. "We've been locked up in the school for ages."

"We were in Gallia a few weeks ago!" exclaimed Micaiah.

"That was AGES ago," said Tormod. "And no fun, since you got murdered by a witch."

"Wha—I'm right here!" she exclaimed.

"Yeah, you got better," Tormod agreed.

Micaiah rolled her eyes.

"But seriously, guys," said Ike, "we have to get going."

"Too late."

Screams pierced the streets of the Begnion capital, and Micaiah growled up at Ashnard.

"You idiot," she said. "This is a direct at of war on Begnion. You realize that, right?"

"Oh, little miss Altina," sighed Ashnard. "When are you going to realize that I don't care?"

"You can't defeat Begnion," she said. "Ashera's on our side."

"She's just a Goddess," said Ashnard. "A remnant of ancient times. She has no value."

"That's really offensive," said Micaiah.

"You were making jokes about Jesus earlier." At Micaiah incredulous glare, he smiled. "I have spies."

"Okay, regardless," said Micaiah, "I didn't mean to be offensive, and second, I wasn't hurting anybody."

"Oh, why not?" asked Ashnard. "It's only fun when you're hurting somebody."

Micaiah's eyes widened. "You're fucked up," she declared.

"And you're coming with me," said Ashnard. He slapped the dragon's neck and came swooping down.

"Like hell you are!" shouted a high-pitched voice.

Up riding on a dragon even huger than Ashnard's was a small girl with a high green ponytail, dressed in gleaming armor, holding a long sword high in the air.

"Princess Crimea!" gasped Ashnard.

"Elincia!" shouted Micaiah and Ike.

"…bitch," said Soren. He unzipped Ike's backpack and pulled out his magician robes. "Looks like there's gonna be a fight."

"My son, I do not wish to warm you," said Ashnard.

Soren grinned creepily. "Oh, good. 'Cause I want to harm you."

Ashnard sighed melodramatically. "Oh, my son. If only you knew the power of the dark side."

Soren looked thoroughly disgusted. "Um. No thanks."

"Well, if you insist," said Ashnard. He brought his hand down. "Kill all the others."

"NO!" shouted the trio. From every corner emerged soldiers cloaked in black.

Ike drew a sword out of his backpack, and threw Micaiah and Soren tomes.

"Let's kick ass," he said in a low voice.

The city was on ablaze. Dheginsea was killing all the soldiers in his path, Elincia still on his back. Somehow, the girl had ended up with a crossbow, and knew exactly how to shoot it. Ike was slicing through armor like nobody's business. He and Micaiah were back to back, Micaiah chanting in a high, clear voice to turn the armor into something as easy to cut as butter. Soren was chanting as well, killing soldiers in his own right, blowing torrential winds right through people's hearts.

And then, from a few miles away, the Tower gleaming with the fires of a thousand burning suns.

"Ashera," whispered Ike and Micaiah.

"No," roared Ashnard. "RETREAT!"

It was barely a minute before Sephiran entered the square. He marched with purpose, but not toward Ike and Micaiah.

He stopped in front of Tormod and slapped him.

"Did you really think you were smarter than us?" he asked. "Did you really think that you would be fine if you broke the rules? We have next to no rules in the school. Did you really think this one wasn't a big deal?"

Tormod's eyes were read. "I'm—I'm sorry," he said, a sob in his voice.

"Tell someone who cares," hissed Sephiran. The man straightened and walked toward Ike and Micaiah.

"You two," he said, "are never leaving that building again."

Micaiah turned toward Ike. "Okay," she said.

Sephiran blinked. "Okay?"

"Yeah…"

Micaiah crumpled toward the ground, almost bashing her head. Ike threw one hand under her shoulders and one hand under her knees, picking her up as though she weighed nothing.

"Put me down, Ike…"

Since both his hands were occupied, Ike pressed his chin against Micaiah's forehead.

"Ike… you're burning up…"

Ike turned toward Sephiran. "She's freezing," he said. "She's like ice."

"How much magic did she use?" snapped Sephiran.

Ike looked down. "I don't know. More than she was letting on."

Sephiran thrust his staff in Ike's hands. "It's a warp staff. You still remember how to use one. Get her to Miss Ashera's office."

Ike and Micaiah disappeared.

Somewhere in the distance, Soren was screaming, "YOU ASSHOLE, YOUR DRAGON BREATH BURNED MY ROBES!"

. . .

"So, I've come to the conclusion that we'd be better as friends."

Ike blinked in shock. "Wait, what?"

Elincia nodded. "I'm not the same person I was when we started going out a few months ago," she said. "And neither are you. But our relationship was defined by who we used to be, and I don't think either of us can achieve our full potential as people when our relationship traps us in old stereotypes." She took a deep breath. "I like you, Ike. I really do. But I don't want to be yours. I want to be mine. And until I'm strong enough to be myself and myself alone, I don't think I should be romantically involved with anyone."

"Oh," said Ike. "Um. Wow."

Elincia giggled, biting her lip. "I guess a girl's never broken up with you before," she said.

"Yeah," said Ike. "That's kinda true."

They laughed.

"I really want to stay friends, though, Ike," said Elincia.

Ike smiled. "I think I could be down with that."

After giving Ike a brief hug, Ike gave her a confused look. "So, you'll be going to prom alone?"

Elincia smirked. "Oh," she said, "I'll find someone."

. . .

"You want to go to prom with me?"

When Elincia nodded, Pelleas' eyes widened in shock.

"But we're enemies!"

"No," said Elincia, very gently. "Your father and my father are enemies. After today, I'd say your father and I are enemies. But one day, our parents will no longer have power, and when that day comes, I want Daien and Crimea to be on peaceful terms."

Pelleas' shoulders slumped. "So you don't actually like me," he said.

"I don't dislike you," said Elincia. "I don't want to go out with you. But I don't want to go out with everyone."

"Why is that?" asked Pelleas. Elincia rose from her seat, looking out the window.

"I'm beginning to realize that what defines you is not your romantic relationships but your platonic ones," she said, her voice quiet. "Your friendships. In twenty years when I'm queen, it won't matter who I liked in middle school, or kissed in high school, or slept with in college. I need to figure out who I am and who my friends are. I don't want to let shallow romances take over my life when I could be forging bonds so much stronger than that."

Pelleas was silent for a moment. "I don't understand."

"Of course you don't," said Elincia. "You've spent your entire life letting other people define you. So have I. It's the reality of being a royal. But one day, if you ever want to be your own person, you're going to have to punch back and say, "No. This is who I am." That's what I'm doing."

"Oh," said Pelleas. Elincia turned around. It was still clear that he didn't understand.

"But that's something you'll have to discover by yourself," she said. "And until then, I can only try to be friendly with you." She smiled, then, her demeanor changing completely. "So, prom?"

. . .

A few days later, when Micaiah got out of the infirmary, she and Ike found themselves in detention for 'harassing peaceful civilians with a bottle of mayonnaise".

Of course, detention was run by the Disciples of Order.

"Really?" said Micaiah. "Saturday detention? The day of prom?"

"Stop acting like prom is such a big deal to you," said Ashera. "And anyhow, for the second part of your detention, you'll be getting prom ready."

A random freshman in detention for something completely unrelated said, "What's the first part?"

(FIVE MINUTES LATER)

"HIT ME WITH YOUR BEST SHOT!" screamed Ike, spreading his arms wide open. Twenty-eight dodgeballs flew at him, which he avoided through a very complicated set of flips. Micaiah caught a ball, stuck her tongue out, sideways cartwheeled next to Ike and threw the ball at the Disciples.

"THIS ISN'T RIGHT!" screamed the Random Freshman.

(AFTER THAT WENT ON FOR ABOUT AN HOUR)

"NOW decorate for prom," said Ashera.

(TEN MINUTES LATER)

Ike and Micaiah skipped through the prom hall throwing glitter everywhere.

"These are a few of my favorite thing!" they sang melodiously.

Suddenly Ike stopped. He was having a Think.

"Micaiah."

Micaiah turned around. "Yup-uh-dee-doodles?"

"You wanna go to prom with me?"

Micaiah raised an eyebrow.

"No, seriously," said Ike. "I have a plan."

"Oh, do you?" she asked, hanging some steamers. "Pray tell."

"Prom is mandatory, correct?" he asked. Micaiah nodded. "So, all the students will be here."

Micaiah nodded again. "Ike, that's what mandatory means."

"No! Listen!" He started painting a unicorn pink. "Every student will be there… including the Otaku."

Micaiah was frozen for a moment. Then, a sly smile crawled onto her face.

"Hell to the yes," she said. They cackled and high-fived. The Random Freshman gulped in fear.

. . .

"PROM-E-DEE-DOO-DAH, PROM-E-DEE-YAY, MY OH MY WHAT A WONDERFUL DAY!" sank a very very drunk Boyd.

"I think the rum punch is working," Micaiah whispered to Ike.

"Seems that way," he said back. "Let's move to phase two of our plan."

They moved out to dance.

Micaiah was wearing a blue dress. It reached a little below her knees. It was strapless, with a corset-style backing. She had a lily corsage, with a golden ribbon to match her eyes. There were other liles braided into her straightened hair.

Ike, for once, was actually wearing a shirt.

"Look at us! Look at us!" they cheered in a sing-song voice. "We're totally not suspicious, oh no, oh no."

"What are they up to?" Faith asked the Otaku, as they walked in. Faith was wearing a lovely floor-length dress, her blonde hair in an elegant ponytail-type-thing.

"Something suspicious," said the latter, shrugging and walking on. Otaku was wearing… a black cloak. With a flower pinned on the hood.

"You dressed up for prom!" exclaimed Micaiah. "Oh, you look lovely."

"Um," said Otaku as Micaiah attacked him… her… it… with a hug. "Get the hell off or your name's going in my Death Note."

Micaiah backed off and whispered to Ike, "Phase three."

They ran up the stairs to the lounge, which was supposed to be for students who'd rather play board games but was really the hotspot for prom hookups, and ran toward the fireplace. Shinon and Lethe, both clearly inebriated, were making out against the wall, and Astrid and Gatrie were already on the couch. Soren and Kara were also there, sitting at a table in front of a fireplace, playing chess.

"SOREN TURN OUT THE FIRE!" shouted Ike.

Soren rolled his eyes. "Relax, Ike. I'm on it." A bucket of water was dumped from the chimney. Ike smiled, and started to crawl up, when he was hit by another bucket of water. He glared upward, and Ranulf grinned down at him.

"Sorry, dude," he said. "I had to do it."

Micaiah joined him in the chimney and they climbed up like Santa Claus. Unfortunately, presents were not waiting for them on the chimney.

"Okay—shit, it's freezing—now we have to zipline back down. While we're distracting the prom, Ranulf, attach my zipline to his… her… its hood. When I zipline over his... her... its head, the cloak will come right off," said Ike.

"Dude, that sounds totally tubular," said Ranulf.

Micaiah rolled her eyes. "Dude, how high _are_ you?"

Ranulf grinned. "Not too high to pull this off." He jumped down the chimney. "SHIT! THIS KILLS MY TAIL!"

Ike turned to Micaiah as she put her foot in the rope. (They weren't using harnesses because a) it wouldn't match their outfits and b) they had a magicians who would break their falls if they fell off). "You ready?"

Micaiah grinned. "Always."

They pressed their weight forward and took off.

. . .

The prom was going very well, until suddenly windows crashed. The second Ike and Micaiah were in the room, they magically repaired.

"After they broke a few too many, Sephiran spelled them to repair automatically," Soren shouted down from the lounge. "Also, Boyd, if you bring Mist up here I have Ike's permission to kill you with a spoon."

Boyd turned red as a tomato and pale as a sheet at once.

As Ike and Micaiah ziplined down, the prom grew quieter and quieter, until the only sound was the whizzing of the crisscrossing ziplines.

And then Ike went over Otaku's head.

_Wow_, thought Micaiah. _This is the first time our plans have ever worked._

She and Ike jumped off and landed, spinning around.

The dark cloak fell from the figure, crumpling into a heap on the ground.

**If anyone was offended by any of the events or jokes in this chapter, it was completely unintentional and I am sincerely sorry.**


	19. The Unexpected Part 1

_**Here is chapter 18 (part 1) after many... months? I thought this would go up a long time ago, but I got distracted by other things going on in life. **_

_**I am back now, writing and updating what I should have updated a long time ago XD. This chapter will have a second part written by me, coming really soon. I'm just adding some stuff to it. Originally this was going to be all one huge chapter but it wouldn't really go together... so two it will be. **_

* * *

Just as everyone was about to witness the reveal of the Otaku, Sephiran sat in a staff room nearby. By nearby, it meant the one located in the next building across from the prom hall. Teachers often took cover there when students found out their favorite YouTube artist just uploaded another video about something trivial or a recent break up. They'd literally take the morning to storm down the corridors and protest, attacking the innocent water fountains –though mainly- the staff rooms. The school would fall to ruin as fires were lit and immediately extinguished by the burst pipes. Explosions would cover the whole area, but apparently they were only for show and totally harmless. To those who weren't teaching/working at the Tower (how is that even possible?), it appeared to be a regular room. Unknown to those people, it was layered with wards and the walls were made of the strongest material out there. Ashera had also built safety cabinets and placed them around, in case one teacher didn't make it to the special units. It allowed the adults a safe environment to enjoy their mornings, usually Wednesday mornings. Now, to those reading… all that really needed to be said… it was an ordinary room. Sephiran was just sitting in it.

He'd taken a break from watching the prom to enjoy a cup of tea. Luckily most the teachers were there, though if they could handle the situation by themselves… that was questionable. Usually he and Ashera were the ones to calm down riots or bring order to chaos. For tonight, he would be allowed one single pause. One that he deserved chapters ago, but never mind that. He raised the cup to his lips just as the door burst open. The sudden noise made the man jump in his seat and drop the steaming cup of tea, spilling it all over him and the floor. With a grumble he looked towards the intruder, finding Zelgius.

"This better be worth it." He sneered.

The gym teacher noticed the dark rings under the man's eyes. They were obvious signs that the man was seriously sleep deprived. He thought about offering the vice-principal one of his yoga CDs, since they were really relaxing and allowed one to completely lose themselves in the Zen moment, but he held himself back. The muscled man slept to them every night and played them on his iPod touch when walking down the hallways. He realized he was getting off track. Zelgius felt somewhat guilty for interrupting one of the only times his superior could get a moments rest. However, the news he came with was something that couldn't be ignored.

"Ike and Micaiah have done…" he began.

"Something _stupid_?" finished the other, bending down to retrieve the unbroken cup; "It doesn't surprise me if their idiocy is beyond the normal level tonight. _Whenever _the occasion arises, be it prom or vacation, there is always the chance that _something_ will go terribly wrong. So let me guess –something has gone _very_ wrong?"

Zelgius shook his head, "They've done something that no one else has had the courage to do sir."

Sephiran looked at the man as if he were insane. He was very concerned about his mental state in that exact moment, seeing as he wasn't his usual zen-self. He stood up and placed a hand to the other's forehead. There was no temperature.

With a sigh, he asked, "What are they doing?"

"The Otaku…"

"Yes?"

"They're revealing the Otaku to all the students." Answered Zelgius.

The religion teacher smacked himself in the face, "How many _times _do I have to tell them there is such thing as _privacy?_"

"Sir…"

"Yes, yes, I know. Privacy isn't a word that could possibly fit into their dictionary. Apparently they think of _piracy_ every time they hear it, so if they've done something with a lot of maneuvering… then you know why. I've tried to talk to them about it but each time they have successfully blocked their ears while singing the _Meow Mix _song and skipping in circles around me." Sephiran's eye twitched. Zelgius was worried about him, seriously worried.

"Ashera isn't anywhere… should we try to locate her?"

Apparently that would only set off the vice-principal more, "_Are any of the teachers there_?"

"Not that I saw…"

Sephiran grabbed his staff, ordering Zelgius to take the fridge. One was best to never ask pointless questions in the matter, so the gym teacher obeyed and took the huge piece of machinery with him.

Once inside the room, students were completely mesmerized. It was so quiet that one could hear the snickering Ranulf in a corner, and he was usually very silent about his laughing. This was a moment worth noting in the Tower's history- perhaps two moments, the complete silence and the reveal. The two teachers stepped in and looked around, trying to spot the main conspirators of the whole ordeal. Somehow or another they had crash-landed into the bowl of punch, well, Ike did seeing as Micaiah's dress was perfectly unharmed. With a sudden realization of what was happening, both students looked up with determined looks. They placed their fingers on their eyebrows, giving the impression they had unibrows. It just looked more intense that way.

In the middle of it all stood one person, with short hair and an eye patch. Everyone had been convinced it to be a geeky looking, pimple-faced, wimpy clothed boy. However what they saw was a well-dressed boy in aristocratic clothes.

"Ciel Phantomhive?" the students asked in unison. Girls began searching around for the accompanying demon butler. Most of them pulled out a volume of the manga or DVD to have signed.

Faith, who had been panicking until a second ago, turned back in shock. Her eyes wider than an owl's.

Micaiah and Ike grinned evilly, quickly making their way around the crowd. They neared Ciel Phantomhive and pulled the clothes off the small person, revealing…

"_Link?_" the students screamed out.

Seeing the ancient Hero of Time made them sink to their knees and worship.

By now, Faith had already collapsed. Apparently having a mental heart attack.

The one dressed as Link, thumbed up everyone, "To celebrate the 25th anniversary."

Ike and Micaiah exchanged a series of looks before exclaiming, "We didn't get Skyward Sword!"

Elincia and Pelleas walked in at that exact moment, probably entering at the worst possible of times. For a second the green-haired girl appeared confused, until she adjusted to the scene and realized what was happening. Without listening to possible objections, she grabbed her date's wrist and jumped into the crowd of crazy students. There was no way she was going to miss this.

On cue, those closest to Link pulled the cosplay off.

Everyone, including Zelgius and Sephiran, stopped moving altogether. Ike and Micaiah held their breath. Ranulf paused in the middle of his…er, whatever he does when people aren't really looking, since… you know, he can't really do it in public. Faith looked like she'd aged by six hundred years, having to grab the nearest person to keep standing straight.

Micaiah was the first to recover, "Yue?"

"You're a GIRL?" Ike shouted, "Holy shit!"

"Who are you?" questioned the rest of the school.

The blue-haired teen smiled, "I'm the Otaku."

"LIAR!" screamed the students.

"I'm...actually, I'm a super-magical human. I have been hiding this fact for a long time. But I have this precious kingdom to go back to. The reason why us super humans have long hair is that our great king Rubalru had a miracle vision when he was about to die. The person who gave him this vision is called Great Kandora! When Kandora used his super magic power, King Rulbaru's Super-Ultra-Magical-Force was freed like a bird and made him grow Ultra-Strong-Magical white long hair from his head! Just then, what happened was when King Rulbaru was resting; an emeny kingdom suddenly attacked him. He was in such a terrible situation! He then asked Kandora for power! And then-!"

The silver-haired girl leaned sideways, whispering, "that's definitely the Otaku. Just less evil but more crazy," to Ike.

Tibarn raised an eyebrow; "You're a magical girl then?"

Yue turned from a sweet looking lolita, into a raging explosion of flames, "DEATH TO THE MAGICAL GIRLS!"

Many could have agreed that this version of the Otaku was scarier.

Meanwhile, Soren was watching from the balcony. He'd known all along. Even Micaiah had known. Their branded-ness allowed them to sense one another. Like when Harry Potter's scar starts hurting and he knows that He-who-must-not-be-named is around. He sighed, for no reason really.

"Is it always so crazy here?" someone asked beside him, Soren turned.

A green-haired, tanned-skinned teen stood leaning on the balcony ledge. When or how he'd gotten there was a mystery. It was obvious he'd never experienced a full day at the Tower. He even wore the official uniform, even though it had become extinct a few weeks back due to Ike and Micaiah's demand to wear pajamas to class. Who knows how Ashera had passed that one by the board of directors. She must have been feeling quite generous and secretive. Or the two pranksters had threatened her. For a moment, Soren considered just walking away but the other appeared to be expecting some kind of answer. Something seemed off about him. Something Soren couldn't quite put his finger on. And under normal circumstances, he would have been able to tell.

So he answered, "I've seen worse."

"So why aren't you down there? You look bored up here all by yourself."

"_What's it to you_?"

"I sense you don't really want to talk right now." The other smiled, "You seem preoccupied with something that's on your mind."

Soren nodded and was about to walk away when the other shouted, "I'm Stefan by the way! I hope we can be friends!"

"I wouldn't count on it." Mumbled Soren.

Sephiran's immediate reaction to the reveal was rather neutral compared to the students'. Staff in hand, he stood facing a roaring crowd of shocked teenagers. Zelgius still held the fridge. Apparently he wasn't letting go of it anytime soon without orders telling him to. The two remained silent as kids shouted their questions at the Otaku.

"So you've been living a double life this year?" Lethe asked with a raised brow and crossed arms.

"Since the beginning of middle school." Admitted the girl with a shrug.

Micaiah scratched her head; "You've been in our class since then?"

"I was in another class… but yeah, I've been in the grade since."

"How? When we had joined classes, I never saw you." Ike appeared to be beyond confused, not at all able to understand how the girl would have been able to go unnoticed by him.

"Well, it was pretty easy actually. I'm so small; I can fit in the cabinets or sit on top of the wall cabinets. Faith just had to make sure no one would look up. Even then, if one of you did, all I had to do was shuffle closer to the wall so no one could see." While she explained, people were waving their arms and running around very quietly. It was like watching a panicking crowd without the sound.

Micaiah and Ike leaned closer together to whisper, "Maybe that's where Ashera got her habit of crawling into furniture?"

Soren made his way down the empty hallway, suddenly forgetting what his purpose was. Why was he leaving? Why was he alone? Why were the windows open? When had Ashera installed all the curtains? The raven-haired boy crossed his arms and considered his next move. For many reasons, he didn't want to go back to the prom… but he didn't want to go back to the dorms. If he wandered around aimlessly, then he'd probably be mistaken as an intruder. Tanith would be more than happy to drag him to the dungeons beneath the tower until the next day. Going back to the comfort of his room seemed like the only possibly safe move he could make.

"Why the hell am I hesitating?" he grumbled, "Its not like…"

Then he remembered how easily students jinxed themselves. He shut his mouth and continued down the hall in hopes that nothing bad would happen.

The boy was so busy thinking as he walked, he failed to take notice of the hunched shadow stalking his every movement.

* * *

_**Oh lalala. Part 2 coming soon. I promise you all this. Another chapter will come shortly, probably by the end of the weekend if all goes well. **_

_**I hope you enjoyed! Please leave comments/feedback. **_

_**Yune**_


	20. Change of Direction

_**Yune's Note: Psssshhh, I told you it'd be here by the weekend! It's long too!**_

_** But really, I apologize for the tardiness. I love you guys for putting up with me and my terrible ability to keep up with stuff. **_

_**Anywho... enjoy the chapter! Next one is Ashera's! **_

_**As usual, disclaimer, I don't own any of the characters except the Otaku and Faith. **_

* * *

Ashera, the very next morning, resumed her normal schedule. By 5:31 AM she was enjoying a nice cup of coffee. By 6:22 AM she had already laid out her wardrobe for the day. By 7 AM she was sitting in a meeting and speaking with the Board of Directors. They had somehow found out about the no-uniform rule and decided to bring it up. She immediately laughed at how late they were in noticing and shrugged their arguments off. The official uniform was unnecessary, seeing as students usually wore whatever they wanted. She told her fellow board members that she would impose a new rule, one that Micaiah had suggested months before…

Students, each month, would dress according to a period in history. No one argued about Ashera's new rule. They remained silent.

Sephiran, Zelgius, Dheginsea and various others were seated next to her at a round table. Many presumed it had been the table King Arthur had used with his knights. The principal felt it was necessary to see all the people sitting with her, making them all equal. Especially because she was never sure whom she should really trust. Seeing their facial expressions helped her out.

"I take it you are enjoying your time in the Tower," She spoke in a monotonous tone, "Izuka."

The old man, muttering to himself, looked up and smiled crookedly, "Yes, quite. All of them are such wonderful speci-children." He coughed.

Sephiran felt a chill run down his spine and his eye twitch. The chill had nothing to do with the open window behind him. Nothing about the scientist seemed reassuring. Sitting beside him didn't make him feel any better either.

"Something wrong? Shall I fetch something to make you feel better? I must have something for it." Izuka grinned and rubbed his hands together.

The vice-principal paled instantly, "N-No that will be unnecessary."

Zelgius offered to get a glass of water, Sephiran declined politely.

The principal cleared her throat, getting the attention of all.

"I have come to a decision." Announced Ashera as she stood, "Certain floors of the tower still remain unused… they're closer to the top, which makes them safer."

"Safer for what? The students are a danger on their own. All they have to do is touch a wall and it collapses!" a board member sighed.

Sephiran spoke next, "We've addressed that issue. All walls have been layered with protection."

Ashera tapped her finger on the desk impatiently, "While I'm happy to hear about the concerns for the walls… I wasn't finished talking." Everyone grew silent, "I also believe they will make sufficient accommodations for the students. We have more than enough room for everyone. Plus, the food supply is unlikely to run out here… _certain_ students have made sure to stock the dungeons."

"Does this mean that the students will be… living in the tower?" Zelgius asked, surprised this plan had never been mentioned to him before.

Ashera rolled her eyes, board-people stared at her in shock, "No, I'll make them sleep on top of the tower in clown outfits."

Even Sephiran seemed astonished, "Surely you don't…"

"I do. I intend to protect every student here to the best of my ability." The goddess spoke firmly, "If they stay in the tower, I have better control. If they continue to go back to their dorms I can't guarantee their safety as much. There is also the matter of my power…"

"Surely you shouldn't have to worry about such a thing? Ashnard is but a man. A mortal." Izuka adjusted his spectacles as he spoke, "Even with a blessing, he cannot have more power than you!"

"A man I must be prepared for nonetheless." The principal sighed, "While he does not have more power than me, it can be tricky."

Dheginsea was the next to stand, "If you are willing to do this, I will gladly do anything in my power to help."

Ashera appeared relieved, "Thank you."

Sephiran swallowed and considered the new plan. If the new arrangements were necessary then he would go along with it. However, he was rather worried about something. Deep in the back of his mind, _something_ bothered him.

"Will classes still go on?" Izuka questioned suddenly, everyone looked from him to Ashera.

"Everything will go on normally. The students must be provided with the usual environment. Anything different will disturb the balance. The last thing I want is for them to feel uncomfortable in their school." She looked to the window, "I don't want them to worry about _anything_."

A man coughed, "They can't live in a bubble either. However hard reality is, they must learn to accept it."

Sephiran shot a vicious glare towards the man, "Many of these children grew up with a war in their backyard. This school is but a small distraction for a fraction of their lives."

Another shook their head, "No reason to let them live obliviously. Surely, they could fight too. There was a group of them that left just recently."

Zelgius clenched and unclenched his hands, "You would send children to fight this war?"

"The ones that left weren't much older than the students here!" someone shouted, "What makes the remaining so special?"

Izuka chuckled, "I see much spirit in the grade with… the blue-haired boy… Pelleas' grade!"

"Ike and Micaiah!" a woman shouted, "That class."

Zelgius and Sephiran stood up at the same time to oppose the idea, Ashera ordered them to sit and calm down. The two men had their fists on the table and their heads down.

"Those children, especially in that grade, have seen enough. They need not suffer more than they already have. Their parents or guardians have made sure to send them to the _safest_ school in Tellius. Safe they will be." Ashera spoke calmly, her authority shining, "Now, boys and girls will learn _separately_ from this day on. Sephiran will take care of the boys and I will take care of the girls."

One board member frowned, "How does this…?"

"The students are in _dire_ need of women and men studies." Ashera replied instantly, eyeing Izuka.

"Ladies, what kind of society do we live in today?"

A group of six sat in a circle, frozen at the sight of their principal sitting in the middle. She was applying nail polish to her toes and stopped every few seconds to examine her work. No one said a word. They all watched in amazement as the goddess did something _normally_. What they didn't know was that she was relaxing in order to preserve her energy. Other groups in the room turned to look when the woman wasn't looking.

Micaiah leaned to whisper something in Elincia's ear, "I know the answer… but I don't know if I actually want to say it."

Elincia glanced at Ashera quickly, "Don't be a wuss. I'm sure she'll appreciate the answer, seeing as nobody else will."

"Still," the silver-haired girl pursed her lips, "I…"

"Altina." Ashera spoke without looking, "I taught you to express yourself, not hesitate like a bumbling baby. Now speak."

"Is it Patriarchy?"

"By the gods above me!" exclaimed the principal; "I get a question for an answer! A question!" Suddenly she stared up at Micaiah and pointed her little brush at the teen, "Be confident girl! Let your voice reach the tallest floor of the tower!"

All six students exchanged looks, Micaiah and Elincia stood up. Just as the woman was about to resume painting her nails both girls inhaled. Mia pulled a pair of earplugs from her pocket and put them in. Faith ran for the soundproof cabinet and locked the door. The two girls, turning purple from the intake of air, began to breathe out again. However, their eyes seemed to be focused on something else.

Meanwhile, at the top of the tower…

"Gentlemen, do any of you know the answer?" Sephiran finished writing something on the board before turning to his students.

Soren sat towards the front window, so he didn't really feel the need to look to his right. However today was different and he did. A pair of greenish-yellow eyes met his.

"Hullo there." The green-haired boy from the prom greeted.

Soren hated his luck lately. It was only getting worse and worse.

"Hi." He mumbled before looking down again.

"Are things better this morning?" questioned Stefan with a wide smile.

"Not after seeing you." Affirmed the other.

"Come on, we don't need to be on bad terms the whole year. We can have each other's backs."

"Then kindly refrain from breathing and talking around me." He sighed, "No, I won't have your back. The only back I'll protect is Ike's… since he doesn't tend to look behind. Otherwise, my friends."

Stefan's head rested on his desk, "I have none at the moment. While you don't have to keep an eye out for me, I'll look out for you." With that, he closed his eyes and remained silent.

Soren could have sworn he actually stopped breathing, however was somewhat relieved when he saw the teen's shoulders rise a little.

Suddenly Ike raised his head, he'd been power-napping until a second ago, "Does anyone hear that?"

The room fell silent, even Sephiran began to listen. The only sound in the room was the rumbling of the vents and the occasional people walking in the hallways. When he was about to resume talking and teaching, two loud voices quickly filled the tower. Most people knew that it was Micaiah and Elincia having some kind of weird moment. It would be the first time they'd ever done something so loud though.

However, the students began to frown and worry. The loud "ahs" were beginning to change into screams of terror. The funny situation quickly escalated into one of panic and worry.

"Micaiah's in danger." Ike pulled his sword out from under his desk and raised it. Normally one would question the reason as to why the boy had a weapon in class, however this would never truly happen. Others began readying themselves for a battle.

"Nobody move." ordered Sephiran in a serious tone.

"I'm going down there." Ike huffed.

"No you aren't." the vice-principal insisted, "No one is leaving this room."

Soren came up beside Ike, "We have to help them!"

"Ashera has specifically ordered us to not allow anyone to leave." Zelgius sighed, walking towards the door, "We cannot disobey her orders."

Suddenly Ike shouted, "We can't just let our family and friends get hurt or killed!"

He lunged for the door, however Zelgius stopped him in an instant. Everyone watched as the student struggled in the tight grip of the gym teacher. Ike knew the man was strong, however he couldn't have guessed just how strong he really was. He tried to move his arms but they were pinned to his sides. Even attempting self-defense moves on the man didn't make his arms budge. Zelgius wasn't letting him get away, no matter what.

The blue-haired teen tilted his head to glare up at the gym teacher, his eyes full of anger. Zelgius knew it wasn't directed at him. When he felt that Ike was still fighting, he forced the boy to sit on the floor. He took him by the shoulders and stared into his eyes.

"You need to listen and understand," Zelgius spoke slowly, "Sometimes, you won't be able to march off recklessly into battle to save someone. You have to accept that people _will_ get hurt. People might die. This happens in any battle or war."

"Micaiah is down there." Ike whispered, his lower lip trembling, "I won't accept _anything_ happening to her."

Zelgius smiled, "Ashera is down there. She won't allow anything to happen to her either. You should know by now, Sephiran, Ashera, and I will do everything to protect our family."

Ike remained silent; Zelgius patted the boy's head and ruffled his hair. The teacher realized this would be an ideal time to hug the younger, but held back once he saw the entirety of the boy section watching them. He cleared his throat, immediately making the observers look away.

"Have faith in us." He looked down at Ike, "Everything will be fine."

"People always say that."

"Trust me. I would never lie to you." Zelgius turned away and walked towards the door.

Somehow he couldn't fully believe the gym teacher. Ike placed his huge sword beside him and looked around.

Ike watched as the man discussed with Sephiran, the two whispering back and forth for minutes. Their hands made weird motions as they talked, Sephiran growing more impatient by the second. Zelgius attempted to reassure the other as much as possible. Suddenly, the vice-principal sighed and nodded. He opened the door and Zelgius left the room. Just as fast as it opened, it closed.

Ike didn't get up to run for it though; he sat on the floor and watched. Sephiran, when he most likely thought no one was looking, appeared sad. His expression pained and worried. The teenager had never seen the man look so defeated. He'd never seen the man look so small. So old. Wait, Sephiran was old? Ike shook that thought out of his mind. He continued to watch. The man gripped the hand he wore his wedding ring on. He whispered something, perhaps a prayer. Ike knew it was for the safety of the students and Ashera. He also knew it was for Micaiah and Sanaki, the two he'd raised with so much love.

He decided to do as Zelgius said. To wait. To trust, even if he was doubtful.

* * *

"Knight!" Ashnard exclaimed with false joy, "What took you _so_ long?"

"I…"

"Anywho," the king nodded in some kind of understanding, "I was thinking up a new way of attacking the tower."

The knight frowned inside his helm, "Are you not attacking it _now_?"

"Are you saying that I am attacking, by just thinking of it? My, the imagination works wonders!" the blue-haired man threw his arms up in the air, "I'm a _genius_!"

A soldier ran into the room, "Sir!"

"Wait a moment," Ashnard whispered, "I'm imagining a giant dragon attacking the tower."

"But…"

"Shhhh."

"The…"

"Shhhh."

"Attack."

The knight shook his head and turned to the soldier, "What's going on?"

"The Laguz inside the tower… they've lost control."

"Oh no, there may as well _be _a dragon attacking." The knight teleported immediately, hoping he wasn't too late.

* * *

"What do you do when a goddess is knocked out?" asked Micaiah, actually on the borderline of freaking out.

Elincia was staring down at the woman, actually puzzled. The two had dragged their principal into a closet when a student Laguz started going crazy. One had, hopefully accidently, hit Ashera in the back of the head. She had twirled to the ground and stopped moving.

"Slap her?" guessed the princess, "I don't know! I've never met a goddess who can faint."

"Calm down." Micaiah breathed in and out, "Let's just try to think things through _very _slowly."

Suddenly a voice spoke from beneath them, "Or you could look down."

Both girls jumped and screamed in pain. The closet was a little smaller than they'd anticipated. Elincia peered down, practically squinting.

"Who's there?"

"Otaku or Yue. Your choice." Answered the girl, "Now, you guys can stay here and panic all you want or you can move your butts and come with me."

Elincia frowned, "To go where? There's nothing down there. Although…"

The two stared into the black abyss below, vaguely aware of what was down there. One would have to think back to the very beginning when students applied for extra-curricular activities…

Micaiah grinned before exclaiming, "The underground library!"

"Good job! Now get moving fellow explorers!" clapped the blue-haired girl.

Elincia grabbed the principal, apologized, before quickly throwing the woman down the entrance. Yue had mere seconds to react before the holy being was tossed her way. She just barely dodged her. Seconds later, the two others jumped in after the woman.

"_GERONIMO_!" They shouted in unison.

* * *

Ike looked around the room, finding himself surrounded by very ill-looking students. Tibarn was clutching his stomach, Ranulf had huge drops of sweat pouring down his forehead, and all the other Laguz students were making faces.

He turned to Soren, "Why does everyone look like they're about to shit themselves?"

The raven-haired teen was just as concerned, "Why is it only them?"

Ike's gaze fell on Kurthnaga, the young dragon, as he kept twitching and shivering. His elder brother had gone missing a few weeks back and he'd been acting odd ever since. Now that Ike thought about it, the Laguz students hadn't been acting themselves for the past few days. To most the change wasn't very obvious. You could say it was Ike's… tenth sense?

"What have they been eating?" he asked, turning to Soren with wide eyes.

"You know what they eat!" Soren snapped, "They have special meal… oh shit."

"Oh shit, indeed." Ike groaned, "That creepy teacher Izuka must've gotten into the cafeteria without anyone knowing."

Soren looked around, the room was becoming increasingly dangerous. In a matter of moments the laguz would be rampaging. They needed to get everyone out and separated from the infected. Fast. He tried to think of another place they could go, but the next room was a floor below. They wouldn't have time. The amount of people that had to be moved was too much. The stairs would be a hazard and the elevators would be a nightmare.

"We need to tell Sephiran." He hissed, "Now!"

"Tell me what?" the man came from behind, making the two boys whirl to look back.

"The Laguz," Ike began.

Soren continued, "They've taken the drugs that…"

"Izuka made to experiment on Laguz!"

Sephiran paled, "That's not possible…"

Suddenly, screams erupted from one corner of the floor. The three turned to see four morphing students. Their bodies folded and moved against their wills, making them cry out in pain. Seeing them change unwillingly made Ike's heart sink. He hated watching his friends get hurt, especially when he could do nothing to help them. Not because he had a hero-complex. It genuinely made him sad and angry.

He marched towards the only person who knew the scientist well, grabbing him by the collar and wrenching him forward. Sephiran grabbed Ike's wrist when the boy raised his fist.

"No," the vice-principal whispered, "he isn't to blame for this."

Surprisingly, Pelleas remained calm and didn't flinch. He kept his gaze locked with Ike's, not even noticing the raised fist.

"Tell me how to stop this." Ike breathed out, trying to hold back his urge to shout at the other.

The prince shook his head, "I honestly don't know. The only solution Izuka mentioned was to kill them when they aren't useful anymore." Ike's grip tightened, "I know that isn't an option we can consider, I swear I wouldn't even give it a thought."

"You seemed so chummy with the old creep, I figured you'd share the same opinions."

"Ike," Pelleas put a hand on the blue-haired other's, "I know I've been a fool… I didn't give a very good first impression, people still hate me." He smiled, "Thanks to you, Micaiah and Elincia… I've vowed to become someone better. Even if it isn't mutual, I consider you guys my closest friends. I don't care if I defy my… father. He has no say in the choices I make here. In fact, I'm disobeying the king with the next thing I'm about to say to Soren."

Soren stepped back a little, "What?"

"There is a plan in motion, right now, to kidnap you and bring you to Ashnard. The Black Knight is supposed to show up any minute an teleport you."

Ike pulled Pelleas roughly, "What are you trying to do?"

"Change." Answered the other, "Now listen to me…"

* * *

"Why does the ground feel so squishy?" Elincia asked with her eyes closed, "I almost don't want to know."

"Don't count on me." Answered Micaiah, "Yue, what are we sitting on?"

"A huge mushroom."

Both girls opened their eyes and looked around. As expected, they were in an area they'd never explored before. Luckily the Otaku had been an avid explorer. She held a map in her hands with exact pathways to the exits. There were a bunch of them in case one was blocked. They quickly noticed some girls sitting huddled together. Mist and Yune were among them.

"What happened?" Micaiah asked, seeing many missing, "Where are the others?"

"I couldn't find everyone." Admitted the Otaku sadly, "I only managed to find a few in the spaces that lead here."

The silver-haired girl suddenly began to panic, "Where's Sanaki? Someone tell me she's here!"

Yune was the one who answered, "She's with Laura, over there."

Elincia had to guide Micaiah and whisper soothing words. People cleared the path as quickly as possible. Laura sat crouched over, completely concentrating on her work. Micaiah felt her world crashing down.

Lying down, with various bandages and uncovered gashes, was Sanaki. She lay perfectly still, having probably fainted. It was relieving to know she still breathed steadily.

"She's fine. Nothing too serious a healing staff can't handle." Laura explained, "She accidently fell through the trap door when Yue opened it earlier."

Micaiah kneeled down beside the girl and smiled. She thanked the gods above. If Sanaki hadn't been all right… she would have died. The girl was special to her and Micaiah had promised to look after her always.

She looked at the Otaku, "We have to get moving. Finding the rest of the girls is our first priority. Do we have any supplies?"

"Not much." Answered Mist, "We only have what we needed for classes. All the rest of our stuff is upstairs."

Micaiah suddenly turned to Yune, "Can you see to Ashera? I've never heard of a goddess who can faint."

Yune's eyes widened in horror, "She can't. Unless she's incredibly weak and reduced to an almost beorc-like state."

The Otaku removed her cloak and placed it around the goddess, "We have to go now. I can't say when the Laguz will figure out we're down here. The longer we stay in one spot, it ups the chances of them finding us."

"Which way?"

"We have a higher chance of seeing other people through Mirkwood."

Micaiah raised a brow, "Hobbit reference? Sweet. Let's go."

* * *

"Can you please repeat that?" Ike asked, eyeing the laguz.

"Get everyone to jump through the windows, they'll regenerate within seconds."

Soren stared at the prince in horror, "While they stay in here, we jump to our deaths? Sounds like a swell plan."

Sephiran shook his head, "It's actually one of the most intelligent plans I've heard in a while."

"Care to explain?" Ike and Soren asked in unison.

"Ever since a few years ago, when you decided to jump from the top of the tower, a safety feature was installed. There is an automatic spell that kicks in whenever it feels something unusual. Whatever or whoever will end up in the dungeons."

Pelleas seemed pleased with himself, "We distance ourselves enough to think of a solution."

Ike nodded, patting the prince on the shoulder, "I might actually like you a bit for this. But we'll save friendship for later. Let's go."

As they quickly told everyone and moved for the large windows, Soren grabbed Ike by the arm.

"My grandfather is probably going to be affected." He said.

"So? Kurth is too. We have two dragons to worry about right now. I'm literally going to shit myself."

"I'm being so _fucking _serious right now, Ike." Soren hissed, "Ashnard is not going to stop until he gets me. The more I run, the worse it'll be."

Ike pulled the other into a hug, surprising them both, "I may or may not have lost Micaiah today. No matter what, I'm not losing my best friend too. Don't you remember what I said to you?"

Soren closed his eyes, "You'd always protect me…even if you died trying. Ike…"

"It may be a cheesy promise, but I'll never forget it. You'd do the same for me." He tightened his grip, "So… defending you from the impossible, I'll do it. I could care less about the dragons. They probably won't be able to tell the difference between a unicorn and panda."

Without another word, Ike held onto Soren and pushed into the window as hard as he could.

Zelgius stood on a hilltop overlooking the tower, removing his helm and staring into the distance sadly. He could already see the disaster and guess the consequences it would leave. Smoke rose from various spots on the ground and a dragon circled the place.

"The board is set, the pieces are moving. We come to it at last, the great battle of our time."

* * *

_**Thanks guys! Please comment! **_

_**If anyone knows where the last line is from, cookies for you! **_

_**Yune**_


	21. Shadows Materialize

**A/N: Here is your next installment! But first, a few notes that you might care to hear: this chapter is much more serious. It's still full of jokes, but we are reaching the final act of this fic, and plot is taking precedent. Second matter of business: don't fret! Yes, this fic does have an end in sight, but just because this fic is reaching its end doesn't mean the story is reaching its end… after all, **_**Path of Radiance**_** had a sequel, did it not? That said, this fic is in its final act, but there is still a little while to go before it actually concludes! A lot of things are still going to happen. A LOT.**

**On another note, this chapter really delves into the mythology of Tellius, and puts a few twists on the games as well. There are a lot of references to the games and the world around it, and though everything is explained in case you haven't played the game or don't remember it, those of you who do remember details will be in for a bit of a treat! I hope you all enjoy it!**

Freefalling through the air was something Ike had always wanted to do. True, he'd only wanted to do it when he and Micaiah were fighting, so he could pull a Reichenbach and watch her sob over his grave, or after the first time he saw _Les Misérables_ and wanted to be in the movie until Micaiah kindly reminded him that his singing was reminiscent of a dying goat.

But never had he expected to pull an Amy and Rory with Soren, of all people. Not because he wasn't willing to tragically die to protect Soren, of course, but because he couldn't imagine even an alternate universe version of Soren stupid enough to jump out of a 700-foot high window.

"Soren," he whispered as they fell. "Do you think we'll end up in the 1920's?"

Soren bit Ike's hand, and Ike resolved to shut up until they reached the dungeons.

…He woke up on a fluffy pink bed with millions of pillows.

"Um," said Ike. "I don't think this is the dungeon."

"Oh, it is," said Soren, idly plucking feathers out of a white pillow. "It's part of the Evil Overlord list."

Ike squinted at Soren. "Wait, Ashnard and Ashera are the same person?" When Soren looked at Ike as though he'd lost his mind, Ike hastened to explain. "I mean, Ashnard is this world's evil overlord, right?"

Soren sighed. "If Ashnard knew about the list, he wouldn't be such a large ham. Anyhow, one of the items on the list is, 'Finally, to keep my subjects permanently locked in a mindless trance, I will provide each of them with free unlimited Internet access.'

Ike's face brightened up. "Wait, there's wifi here?"

Soren groaned. "All I meant was that making the dungeons luxurious is probably a technique Ashera uses to discourage people from trying to escape."

Ike frowned. "Does she actually keep people here?" Soren shrugged, and Ike sighed. "Fine," he said. "Could you at least get us out of here?"

Soren nodded, and turned to the walls, which were entirely solid. "There has to be a trick to this," he muttered. "What would I do if I were a crazy sociopathic goddess who felt like running a high school?"

. . .

"This place," declared Micaiah, as they walked through the mushroom-filled tunnels, "is so, so creepy."

"It's fascinating," breathed Elincia, quickening her pace. She pulled her phone out of her white Chanel bag, and Micaiah had to be impressed by both her bravery in risking that in these tunnels and the fact that the bag was still spotless. Micaiah silently decided that the girls should be roommates the following year, so she could uncover Elincia's fashion secrets. And, of course, steal her designer clothes.

They'd split with the other group—Mist, Laura and the rest had found a few Crimeans, including Kieran and some other knights whose names Micaiah couldn't remember, and stayed with them. Ashera and Sanaki were injured, after all, and they couldn't go traipsing about in a small group. Elincia, Micaiah, the Otaku, and Yune, however, had set off to try and find any escape for the students.

Elincia was crouched down, the flashlight on her phone illuminating writing at the bottom of a wall. "How many secrets do you think have been lost down here?"

Micaiah blinked. "Dude, I'm more concerned with the awesome parties we could have down here.

Elincia rolled her eyes, than looked back at the wall. "It's in the Ancient Language," she said. "_A-gabi iss-tredi… sora ke…_"

"You speak the Ancient Language?" asked Micaiah with admiration.

"Not really," admitted Elincia, with a slight blush. "But so many people here speak it as their mother tongue, so I've been trying to learn a little."

"As one of said people, I approve," said Micaiah, leaning down next to her. "Let's see…" Micaiah squinted. "Wow, this dialect is older than I'm used to. This is like, _Ancient_ Ancient Language." Her face brightened. "Lucky for us, we have someone who was around when people spoke like this. Hey, Yune!" she called, turning around. Her expression went from glee to horror.

"Shit, Yune," she said, launching herself over to where the small goddess had collapsed. "Shit, shit—" She looked up at the Otaku, against whom Yune's lifeless form was leaning. "When did she—"

"Just a few seconds ago," said the Otaku. "I think she and Ashera must be linked somehow. She's been looking pale ever since Ashera fainted."

"I think she mentioned that once," said Micaiah. "Damn…" She leaned down and placed her ear on Yune's chest, sighing in relief when she felt the girl's steady breaths against her cheek. She straightened up, and the Otaku leaned down and picked Yune up, throwing her over her shoulder so she was easier to carry.

"Hang on," came Elincia's voice. "I think it says something about the Tower of Guidance…"

"We don't have time for history lessons, Elincia," snapped Micaiah. "Let's move."

"Oh, really?" asked Elincia. There was something biting in her tone. "And where to you suggest we go, oh fearless leader?"

Micaiah opened her mouth, but found there were no words to form.

"These… scriptures, on the wall?" said Elincia, taking a step toward Micaiah. "They were written hundreds, if not thousands of years ago. They were written when Ashera and Yune were one and the same. They may be our only hope for figuring out what in the goddesses' names is happening, and so help me, you are going to _translate_."

Micaiah nodded helplessly, and the girls stepped back to the writing on the wall.

. . .

"I've got it," said Soren, about fifteen minutes later.

Ike rolled over from his perch on the fluffy pink pillows. "That took you a while," he said. "I almost fell asleep."

Soren scowled. "I just cracked a spell made by an immortal goddess to lock up her prisoners in fifteen minutes at age seventeen," he said. "Can I get some credit?"

"No," said Ike, sitting up. "No, you cannot." He threw a pink, feathery boa of feathers he's plucked from the pillows over his shoulder and strolled out of the open doorway.

"You look fabulous," said Soren.

"I am," said Ike, and walked into a transparent forcefield. The force of it threw him back through the doorway. "Ow!" he exclaimed, getting to his feet.

Soren never outright laughed, but Ike could tell he was amused. "I have to pull that down," he said. A few magic words later, it was done, and a much less fabulous Ike walked through the doorway, defeated.

Soren frowned behind him. "This is strange," said Soren. "The magical signature… it isn't Begnion's."

"What's a magical signature?" asked Ike.

"Every country has one," replied Soren as they walked. They were in a strange sort of tunnel. It was like a cave, large, round, and rough, but the walls and floor gleamed gold, and there were massive torches of silver fire lighting the way. Ike had seen silver fire a handful of times in his life, only ever wielded by Ashera's hand. It jumped and danced like a thousand stars, struggling to return to the skies but locked in an eternal battle with gravity.

"The forces of magic change in every country, depending on who the most powerful magic user is," said Soren. "Begnion has the most straightforwardly powerful magical signature, as it is where Ashera resides."

"All because of Ashera?" asked Ike, impressed. "I feel like I'm discovering a whole new side to her these days."

Soren stopped in his tracks and eyed Ike suspiciously. "…Ike, she's a goddess," he said.

Ike blinked. "Right," he said. "I mean. Yep. I knew that."

Soren sighed, and walked forward, his hair swinging out behind him like a shadow. Ike trudged behind him. "Nevertheless," said Soren, "there's something very off about this place's magical signature."

Ike frowned. "Have you felt it anywhere before?"

Soren groaned. "No, Ike," he said. "If I had, I'd—" Soren halted again, but this time it wasn't to mock Ike. It was almost as though he'd hit a wall, but knowing Soren, this was a figurative wall of information rather than an actual wall of brick or wood.

Soren breathed out. "I _have_ felt it before," he said, his tone both sinister and wonderstruck. "In the Kauku caves."

"NO!" screamed Ike. He grabbed Soren by the shoulders, lifted him a foot of the ground, and held him there, like a sociopathic dark-haired red-eyed half-human Simba. "I'll take the fire balls, Soren!" he exclaimed, as loud as he good, so Soren would surely hear him over the destruction of the hell they'd walked into. "They'll burn me, but they'll never take you alive! This is my sacrifice for you, my friend. This is..." he gasped for air, "what father… would have wanted."

"Ike," said Soren. His voice was more menacing than the sight of the dragons he was descended from. "We aren't in the Kauku caves."

"Oh," said Ike. "Well, then." He put Soren down.

"Furthermore, Ike," said Soren, "seeing as I am a) a mage and b) descended from dragons, the likelihood of me making it through a cave of fireballs is much higher than most people's. If anything, you should be the one running away."

"And leave you?" asked Ike. "Never."

Ike thought he saw Soren's ears go slightly pink, but they were soon hidden by his curtain of dark hair. "The point was that neither of us would have to leave the other," he muttered.

"Of course not," said Ike, puzzled. "We are friends. We are best friends. That is what best friends do, stay together. Also make pot brownies."

"THAT WAS ONE TIME," shouted Soren. The boy cleared his throat. "Ahem," he said, as though to make sure Ike got the message. "But yes, the magical signature. Is like the one Kauku caves. I noticed it to be strange then, but I figured that had something to do with the raging fireballs, and, of course, the fact that the Kauku caves were connected to both Goldoa and Gallia and yet were the property of—"

Soren stopped speaking. Ike took a step toward his friend. "Soren?" he asked, afraid the boy was choking.

"Oh," breathed Soren. "Oh, shit."

. . .

"What does it say?" breathed Elincia, green hair framing her perfect face like a maleficent halo. She was crouching next to Micaiah, their cheeks brushing and their elbows bumping as they tried to decipher the words beneath the light of Elincia's phone.

Micaiah frowned. "It's just talking about the balance of chaos and order," she said. "The balance of chaos and order must be maintained…nothing out of the ordinary preachings. It says, hang on…"

"It says, 'hang on'?" asked Elincia dryly. Micaiah nudged her shoulder.

"Shut up," she said. She leaned down a little closer to the scriptings, and traced her fingers over the carved stone. "The Medallion of Lehran must be protected…"

"Um, yes, what?" asked Elincia. Micaiah could feel the words on her cheek, each of Elincia's breaths like a warm kiss on her frozen skin.

"Wait," said Micaiah. "Lehran. That's… that's Sephiran's old name, from when he was a heron."

Elincia blinked. Micaiah couldn't see it, but she could feel the harsh, sudden movement of the girl's eyelashes. "Vice-principal Sephiran was a… heron?"

"He's my ancestor," Micaiah said. "He married Altina—"

"Micaiah Altina," Elincia breathed, as though in a state of wonder.

"Yes, my namesake, and one of Ashera's three heroes, along with Dheginsea and Soan, from the war of the Dark God." Micaiah inhaled. "Laguz lose their powers when they made with a human. That's why Sephiran is the way he is now. But _why_ is his name in this scriptures?"

"Well," asked Elincia, "what exactly does it say about him?"

"The medallion of Lehran must be protected," she translated, the words sweet ashes in her mouth, "for within it rests the dark god, Yune—_what?_"

"Since when is Yune a dark god?" asked Elincia. "That's ridiculous."

"The war of the dark god," said Micaiah, as though in a trance. "After the dark god flooded the world, Ashunera cast of her chaos, and Ashera and Yune were born. On the continent of Tellius they fought, for it was the only land the waters had spared, and Ashera raised three heroes from the beloved Zunanma she'd created: Altina, the beorc, first queen of Begnion and mother of the first Branded, wielding the blades Alondite and Ragnell; Soan, the Lion Warrior, the first king of Gallia and the second king of Begnion after Altina's death; and Dheginsea, the black dragon king, ruler of Goldoa since times forgotten. They defeated the dark god's army, and sealed the god's powers away, so that Tellius would know peace everlasting…"

"How could the god be Yune?" asked Elincia. "That doesn't make sense. She's Ashera's sister, they were once one goddess combined, and she hasn't been sealed away, ever." She paused. "Has she?"

Micaiah shook her head. "I've known her for years and years and years," she said. "She was never locked away or sealed anywhere. I've always thought she and Ashera separated to balance their power, so that one individual couldn't destroy the world…"

"Well, clearly there's more to the story," said Elincia. "But I mean… if Yune isn't in that medallion…"

Micaiah felt her breath catch in her throat. _Then who is? _

. . .

"Oh?" asked Ike. "Oh, what? Oh, you want to share the meaning behind 'oh shit', because that would be lovely, it's been five entire minutes and I'm starting to think you're having some sort of seizure where you don't move."

"The Kauku caves," said Soren slowly, as though each word was being dragged out by Ike's willpower rather than Soren's volition, "they connect two countries and belong to neither, and have their own magical signature."

"You said that," Ike told him impatiently.

"These caves have the same signature," said Soren. "And they're caves, and—"

"You think these caves connect two countries, too?" Ike said. His heart pounded in his ribcage, like a prisoner beating against the bars of his cell, throwing himself into their iron grip again and again. "That's brilliant! We could use it as an escape route, we could—we could go back to the school, evacuate everyone, it probably leads to Crimea, this is perfect—"

"No, Ike," said Soren.

"Oh," said Ike. "So it doesn't—or do you think these are connected to the Kauku caves?" Soren nodded slowly. "Oh, okay, that makes sense. Caves are big sometimes, maybe they stretch even further than we thought—Soren, why are you getting pale? Paler, I mean?"

"Ike," said Soren slowly, "these caves connect Begnion, Gallia, and Goldoa. They're underneath the Tower of Guidance, the center of Tellius, the holiest part of the land. They hold _prison cells_. If the goddess is holding prisoners, then she needs somewhere that doesn't belong to any country—and both the tower and the goddess have been around a lot longer than the countries Tellius is currently made up of, those borders have changed dozens of times in the last seven centuries."

Ike frowned. "Okay, so she has a cave and it currently connects to three countries—" but Soren was already shaking his head.

"No?" asked Ike, feeling frustrated at his lack of intellect for the first time in his life. "So what do you think?"

Soren closed his eyes, and swallowed. "I think these caves go under the entire continent, Ike."

"Oh," said Ike. "Oh, shit."

. . .

"What else do the scriptures say about Yune, Micaiah?" pressed Elincia.

Micaiah scanned the entire entry, reading the Ancient Tongue more fluently than she had in years. "Nothing," she said. "Absolutely nothing. It's just a warning—"

"_Just_ a warning?" asked Elincia. She bumped her shoulder against Micaiah's. "Well, hello, _read it_."

"When all the land is plunged into the chaos of war, the dark god shall wake from the medallion, and cast its judgment down on beorc and laguz alike. And then shall be the end of all things."

"Well," said Elincia. "She's been awake for a long time, and we're all still around. This is the first time I've even seen her sleep, and even now, it's not like she's in some sort of medallion—"

"The herons shall hold the medallion from this day until the last day, and their songs shall keep it in its prison for all eternity. Those without the balance will fall to madness if it touches their skin. But if one sings the galdr of release, the medallion shall light up with the blue fires of the darkest magic, and then the dark god shall wake from its slumber."

"A glowing blue medallion," mused Elincia. "Huh. That sounds kinda like that necklace Ike's sister owns—_holy fucking shit_, _Mist has been carrying around the darkest force in Tellius._"

"On her chest," added Micaiah. "What a pervy god."

Elincia nudged Micaiah so hard she fell over.

. . .

"So," said Ike, "where do you think the entry points are?"

"Old places," said Soren immediately. "The oldest castles and towers in Tellius. The oldest is the Tower of Guidance, of course, but there are others."

"Castle Goldoa," said Ike. "The Serenes Forest has an entrance, that's where we entered the Kauku caves—do you think it's wherever there were ruling families?"

"Yes," said Soren, "but where they used to rule. Like in Gallia, it led to Gebal Castle, remember?"

Ike swallowed. "That's where my father died," he said. "Daein attacked us, during that war—that's where I met Micaiah—"

"And I'll bet that Gritnea Tower has an entrance as well," said Soren. "Before Begnion gave Crimea sovereignty and they built the castle in Melior, it was held independently by a small clan of Branded. I tried to visit it recently, over Winter break, but it was closed to visitors."

Ike frowned. "Isn't Gritnea a research facility now? Izuka told us that it was where he used to work."

"Mmm," said Soren. "And then there's probably Asmin, that island off the coast of Begnion no one knows about, and Palmeni Temple, in Daein."

"Do you think the Daein's know about it?"

"It's possible, of course, but—"

"It's possible that Daein has a perfect underground path through which it can attack every other country in Tellius?" asked Ike. "Just like it's possible that with no forewarning, Daein attacked Crimea, seemingly appearing out of nowhere just a short distance from Melior?"

Soren paled. "They have Gritnea Tower," he said. "Holy shit, they have Gritnea tower. It's a research facility—"

"_Izuka_'s research facility," said Ike. "And I bet my beautiful ass it was Izuka who made the laguz at school go feral—"

"—and that's probably where he's experimenting on them!" exclaimed Soren. "So many laguz students 'went home' after that first Daein attack—I texted a few but I never heard back—Izuka took them. And the first attack, the generals used warp staffs, but they couldn't carry an entire army—but Ashnard knew the only way he could take the Tower of Guidance was to find a way to get inside—"

"…Goddess," said Ike. "All of Tellius could be under attack right now."

. . .

"These tunnels are weird," declared Micaiah as they walked in search of more scriptures. "They're probably caves, actually, this rock isn't carved by people, but I feel like… like we're not where we should be."

"Where should we be?" asked Elincia, walking next to her.

"We should still be under Sienne, or at least Begnion," said Micaiah. "I mean, we've only been walking from the library entrance for a total of ten minutes. But you see that moss?" she asked, pointing at a blue grasslike substance on the ceiling. "That grows in the north. And not northern Begnion, but even further north than that, like… northern _Daein._ I'm talking north of Nevassa, the capital."

Elincia laughed nervously. "Well, it's not like we're in Daein," she said. "I mean, there's no way. Like, that's impossible. Totally impossible, geography doesn't work like that."

"Magical underground libraries might," whispered the Otaku, still carrying Yune behind them.

"Speaking of which, how is this a library?" asked Elincia. "There aren't any books—"

"—only creepy ancient scriptures," said Micaiah.

Elincia shivered. "That's creepy. Also, I'm cold."

"Northern Daein," said Micaiah. "I told you."

"That's stupid," retorted Elincia. "We can't be in Northern Daein, right—" she turned to face the Otaku—"aah!"

"What is it?" asked Micaiah.

"I just hit something? I think?" Elincia held out her hand, and it flattened against an invisible surface.

"A force field," Micaiah breathed. Above, she heard footsteps—heavy footsteps, the footsteps of armoured soldiers. "Shit."

"Where _are _we?" asked Elincia. "Nevassa?"

"I don't know, but wherever we are, we've been found and I don't have time to take down the barrier." Micaiah swore, then turned to the Otaku. "Yune," she whispered. "They can't get their hands on her, she's an unconscious god, they could wield her power or experiment on her—Otaku, Yue, whoever the hell you are—"

"I am a Balrog of Morgoth," the Otaku said stoutly.

Micaiah nodded. "Fine, whatever, you shall not pass through this force field. Take Yue and run."

The Otaku's hood lowered, and she appeared to be looking at the unconscious girl in her arms.

"I said RUN!" screamed Micaiah. The Otaku nodded, threw Yue over her shoulder, and ran like hell. She turned a corner just as Micaiah saw the light of a torch behind her.

"You," said General Petrine, a hundred Daein soldiers at her back and a flaming spear in her hand. "It's my lucky day." Petrine scowled in Elincia's direction. "Who's the wench?" she asked.

"Mya," said Micaiah desperately. "She's my friend, she's from Daein too, we grew up here together—"

"That's the Crimean bitch, isn't it?" asked Petrine. "Sorry, branded, but your tales aren't fooling anyone. Sephiran's adoptive daughter and the princess of Crimea are better hostages than even I'd expected." She turned back and shouted: "The king will want to see them! Bring them to the king!"

"Where are we?" Micaiah asked. Petrine smiled wickedly at her.

"Palmeni Temple," she said. "Surely you remember our time here during the last war?"

"If I recall correctly," said Micaiah, "Ike and I managed to destroy twelve precious Daein historical treasures in the space of eight minutes under your watch when we were seven. Including the royal toilet seat."

Petrine blanched, placing her hand over her heart. "Oh blessed royal toilet seat, may you rest in peace."

"MAY IT REST IN PEACE," thundered the one hundred Daein soldiers.

"And then you were my English teacher, and I roped the entire grade into turning our poetry assignment into a series of consecutive poems, creating a long epic poem about a bird laguz mating with a human and having a psychotic baby named Tetrine. It was quite the masterpiece."

Petrine growled, but they had already reached the top of the cave and were in the temple. Ashnard was waiting, and the Black Knight stood next to him. Micaiah couldn't exactly see his face, but she thought he looked surprised.

"Back again, are we?" asked Ashnard, in a very evil voice.

"Boo," she said. "It's my second visit this month. I do love my home country."

"I will see to you later," said Ashnard, "but I'm rather busy attacking your school. Tell me, how is Ashera doing?"

"Fine, I think," Micaiah bluffed. "I don't really know. Last I saw her she was painting her toenails and shouting about patriarchy."

"We're secretly a colony of misandrists," said Elincia solemnly.

Ashnard rolled his eyes. "I'm surrounded by idiots," he said.

"You sounded exactly like your son there," Micaiah told him. "Except, you know, he is surrounded by idiots. You are one of the idiots."

Ashnard frowned. "But I don't surround him."

"Your idiocy has a very powerful presence, even across the whole of Tellius," said Elincia.

Ashnard wasn't sure whether he should be complimented or insulted, so he ignored her. "I will see to you soon," he said, "but in the meantime, take them to the cellar. And take this. I trust you know what to do with it."

Micaiah felt a weight settle in her hands, but she refused to break eye contact with Ashnard. When he finally turned away, she looked down.

"Lehran's medallion," she breathed. She looked at Ashnard's retreating back. "How do you have this?" she shouted. "It belongs to—"

"It does not belong to Elena's daughter, just as it never belonged to Elena, but if you must know, my faithful Izuka swiped it from her," replied Ashnard, still walking away. "It's true owner was the last inhabitant of your new quarters."

"Who was that?" shouted Micaiah.

Ashnard looked over his shoulder and grinned. "You'll find out soon enough."

Micaiah screamed as the guards grabbed her, one mailed fist digging into her belly as she was dragged down the stairs, held a foot above the ground, and thrown into a room, Elincia behind her.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" she shouted, but the guards closed the door, and she and Elincia were left alone in the cold, dark room. Micaiah cursed, then whispered a small light spell, and took a look at the room.

She was still focused on the door when Elincia's quivering voice reached her.

"Micaiah?" she said, quiet. "I think you should see this."

Micaiah turned around, only to be met by the sight of the Ancient Language, the current version of the Ancient Language, scribbled on every corner of every wall. She read it faster than she's ever read before.

"Lillia," she said weakly. "This was Lillia's room."

"Who's Lillia?" asked Elincia, stepping towards Micaiah. The girl laid a hand on Micaiah's arm, and Micaiah realized she was trembling.

"The third princess of Serenes," she said. "Reyson's older sister. She disappeared, no one ever found out what happened to her… I think this is where she died." She read more. "Ashnard locked her up with the medallion, and she gave it to Ike's mother Elena before she died. _That's_ how Mist had it."

Elincia frowned. "Does it say what Ashnard wants you to do with it?"

Micaiah read some more, and felt her legs buckle beneath her. Elincia caught her as she stumbled backward. Micaiah breathed, once, twice, three times, then said:

"He wants me to free the dark god."


End file.
